A male Eastern Amberwing dragonfly (Perithemis tenera) was spotted perching on the nose of a water turtle, possibly a Northern Red-bellied Cooter (Pseudemys rubriventris), at Mulligan Pond, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge (JMAWR), Fairfax County, Virginia USA.
02 AUG 2017 | JMAWR | Eastern Amberwing (male) and water turtle
As soon as the turtle surfaced the dragonfly appeared out of thin air and landed on the turtle’s nose. I shot two photos before the turtle dove underwater and swam out of sight, but for a magical moment, the turtle and dragonfly were pond pals!
Editor’s Notes
Sincere thanks to Matt Ratcliffe, member of the Virginia Odonata Facebook group, for confirming my tentative identification of the water turtle. Now that the identity of the turtle is certain, I named the pair of pond pals Scooter and Cooter.
Copyright © 2017 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
Tags: Eastern Amberwing dragonfly, Family Libellulidae (Skimmers), Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, male, Mulligan Pond, Perithemis tenera
September 7, 2017 at 12:50 pm |
Nice one, Walter! Fabulous shot! 🙂
September 7, 2017 at 4:35 pm |
Thanks, Pete! I saw an unknown species of cruiser dragonfly around the same time last year at Mulligan Pond. The dragonfly flew a seemingly endless patrol around the pond shoreline. I happened to be scanning the water looking for the cruiser when the turtle surfaced.
December 30, 2017 at 4:00 am |
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