I nicknamed this male Gray Petaltail dragonfly (Tachopteryx thoreyi) “Bender” because of his malformed abdomen.
06 JUN 2018 | Northern Virginia | Gray Petaltail (male)
Bender is shown perched on a tree that fell across a forest seep. It’s possible the tree makes the seep seepier, and that’s a good thing for the Gray Petaltail larvae that are well-adapted for this specific type of habitat.
06 JUN 2018 | Northern Virginia | Gray Petaltail (male)
Just look at that face — Bender exudes personality! In the following photo, Bender perched in a spot so that he was looking at me directly. Yep, that’s when we bonded.
06 JUN 2018 | Northern Virginia | Gray Petaltail (male)
Next post: “Bender” on grass. No, wait — that doesn’t sound right!
Copyright © 2018 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
Tags: Bender, Family Petaluridae (Petaltails), forest seep, Gray Petaltail dragonfly, habitat specialist, male, malformed, Tachopteryx thoreyi, terminal appendages
walter sanford's photoblog 
June 20, 2018 at 6:14 am |
Great shots, Walter. I especially love the final one (no surprise there) and the way that you captured the full wing span, the direct eye contact, and the curved abdomen gradually falling out of focus.