Gray Petaltail dragonflies (Tachopteryx thoreyi) have a well-known preference for perching on gray or tan colored surfaces, including gray or tan colored clothing. Dressed appropriately, Mike Powell and I visited a hotspot for Gray Petaltail where we hoped to shoot some photographs of T. thoreyi perched on each other.
The first individual is a female, perched on the front of Mike Powell’s gray sweatshirt.
21 MAY 2019 | Northern Virginia | Gray Petaltail (female)
The last individual is a male, perched on Mike Powell’s left shoulder.
21 MAY 2019 | Northern Virginia | Gray Petaltail (male)
I’m guessing the dragonflies were thinking, “Hey Mike, you look like a tree to me!” No offense intended, good buddy. In fact, I think you should be flattered that these spectacular specimens befriended you!
Copyright © 2019 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
Tags: 21 MAY 2019, Family Petaluridae (Petaltails), female, friendly, Gray Petaltail dragonfly, Grays, habitat specialist, male, Tachopteryx thoreyi, terminal appendages, Virginia
walter sanford's photoblog 
May 22, 2019 at 6:43 pm |
Reblogged this on Mike Powell and commented:
I like dragonflies a lot, as most of you know, so it is only natural that they like me too. Two Gray Petaltail dragonflies showed their affection yesterday by perching on me. Thanks to my good friend Walter Sanford for taking these shots. Check out his blog for lots of photos and information on dragonflies and other nature topics.
May 29, 2019 at 5:17 am |
[…] on me repeatedly that day. Walter memorialized one such encounter in his posting last week You look like a tree to me! that included shots of one perched on my shoulder and one on my […]
June 6, 2022 at 6:53 am |
[…] I have been told that Gray Petaltails especially like the color gray and a number of times one has perched on me when I was deliberately wearing a gray shirt. Fellow dragonfly enthusiast Walter Sanford capture that phenomenon in 2019 in one of his blog postings that he called “You look like a tree to me!” […]
June 18, 2023 at 6:37 am |
[…] that must have made me look like a tree to the dragonfly. If you want to see the photos, check out Walter’s blog post entitled “You look like a tree to […]