This is the smallest darner in our range—barely bigger than a typical skimmer. It is also the earliest darner to appear each year. Here's the Flight Season for the California Darner:
Notice that they begin to appear in March, though only about 1% of observations occur in that month. They peak in June and July, with over 60% of all observations. Finally, the last few percent of appearances occur in September.
Their range is basically west of the Rockies, with a heavy density of observations in Northern California, Oregon, and Washington.
The California Darner is a lovely dragonfly, with lots of blue along the length of the abdomen, and striking blue eyes. It has a tendency to land on the ground, or very close to it, which is a bit unusual for darners.
The key field mark for this species is as follows: no front stripes on the thorax. It's our only darner that lacks the front stripes. In addition, notice that the tenth segment of the abdomen is cream colored, and the appendages are simple in shape.
You can read much more about this dragonfly, its behavior and field marks, in my new field guide Common Dragonflies and Damselflies of the Pacific Coast, available on Amazon at the following link:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1934199265?pf_rd_p=6d50e0ee-c639-41a8-91f7-8e1b816b5bf3&pf_rd_r=KH4H5P3KHJ7KVBDW7J1C
No comments:
Post a Comment