During August of last summer I came across a huge female dragonhunter, but I could not photograph her. But I kept returning to the same place and was eventually rewarded with a male that landed on a twig nearby. I managed to get the first picture (which is heavily cropped), but then he flew off. Dragonflies have favorite perches, and so it seemed reasonable that this fellow would return. I only had to wait, and perhaps be a bit lucky.
Dragonhunter dragonfly! by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrI hung out for about an hour, and during that time he would occasionally cruise by while on long patrols. It was perhaps a phalanx of canoers that did the trick, since when they passed through the big dragon came right after, following in their wake. It seemed that the people had disturbed it farther up river, and it came my way. This time it showed a keen interest in landing on the twig again, and presently it did. Heart pounding, I went to work taking numerous pictures.
After a time, I worked up the courage to venture out into the river to attempt a side view of this prize. The current was brisk, but the water was shallow and the bottom was firm and sandy. I was of course very careful as I was carrying about $2500 of gear on me. But things worked out very well. In time I was even able to sit in the water next to the dragonhunter so that I could rest the lens on my knees while taking pictures. He proved to be very content and cooperative. In the end, it was I who retreated while he stayed on his perch.
Dragonhunter dragonfly by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Dragonhunter dragonfly by Mark Sturtevant, on FlickrWhat an awesome insect! You just never know what you will find during these adventures!
Paulson's field guide Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East describes how their over-sized legs cause them to grip onto perches in the manner shown above, and he adds: "seeming awkward, too large for perch." Yep, that is him!