Posts Tagged ‘Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly’
August 31, 2020
A Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly (Argia apicalis) was spotted during a photowalk with Michael Powell near Mulligan Pond at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge (JMAWR), Fairfax County, Virginia USA.
A. apicalis has “a blue form female and a brown form female.” Since neither the hamules nor terminal appendages can be seen clearly in the preceding photo, I’m unsure whether this individual is male or female.
Post Update
Michael Ready, good friend and fellow member of the Dragonfly Society of the Americas, shared the following comment via e-mail.
That’s an outstanding picture of a Blue-fronted Dancer. You state you are unsure of the individual’s gender. I am confident that it is a male. According to my field guides (Lam and Paulson), the blue-form female lacks the blue eyes and blue S8-10 that are apparent in your picture. Source Credit: Michael Ready.
Thanks for the kind words and helpful information, Michael! As it turns out, the field marks that you described are shown clearly in one of my blog posts: Blue-fronted Dancers (male, female), especially this photo.
Copyright © 2020 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
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Tags:Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly, Family Coenagrionidae, hamules, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, Mulligan Pond, Narrow-winged Damselflies, terminal appendages
Posted in Aperture, Canon 430EX II Speedlite, damselflies, digital photography, education, Lightroom, natural science, Panasonic DMC-FZ300, Photoshop, photowalking, wildlife photography | 1 Comment »
March 22, 2019
Male
A Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly (Argia apicalis) was spotted near Mulligan Pond at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, Fairfax County, Virginia USA.
This individual is a male, as indicated by the pattern of blue coloration on his thorax and abdomen, plus the blue coloration on abdominal segments eight through 10 (S8-10).
Female
Several Blue-fronted Dancers were spotted during a photowalk along Accotink Creek/Great Blue Heron Trail at Accotink Bay Wildlife Refuge (ABWR), Fairfax County, Virginia USA.
The first individual is a female, as indicated by two field marks.
Eyes brown, darker above; lack of blue in eyes in andromorph good distinction from male. Source Credit: Paulson, Dennis (2011-12-19). Dragonflies and Damselflies of the East (Princeton Field Guides) (Kindle Locations 3451-3452). Princeton University Press. Kindle Edition.
Female Blue-fronted Dancers are polymorphic: andromorph females are blue like males; heteromorph females are brown-green. Andromorph females tend to be a lighter shade of blue than males of the same species.
This individual is a blue andromorph. Regardless of the color morph…
females never have blue on the last abdominal segments (S8-10). Source Credit: Michael Boatwright, founder and administrator of the Virginia Odonata Facebook group.
More males
Two male Blue-fronted Dancers were spotted at Accotink Bay Wildlife Refuge.
Copyright © 2019 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
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Tags:Accotink Bay Wildlife Refuge, Accotink Creek, andromorph, Argia apicalis, Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly, Family Coenagrionidae, female, heteromorph, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, male, Mulligan Pond, Narrow-winged Damselflies, polymorphic
Posted in Aperture, Canon 580EX Speedlite, damselflies, digital photography, education, natural science, Panasonic DMC-FZ150, Photoshop, photowalking, wildlife photography | Leave a Comment »
August 7, 2018
Several Blue-fronted Dancer damselflies (Argia apicalis) were photographed along an unnamed small creek in Fairfax County, Virginia USA.
Male
The first individual is a male, as indicated by the pattern of coloration on his thorax and abdomen.
Female
Female A. apicalis is polymorphic, including two morphs: tan; and blue.
Blue females can be differentiated from blue males by looking for the reproductive anatomy located on the underside of the posterior end of their abdomen.
Copyright © 2018 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
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Tags:Argia apicalis, Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly, Family Coenagrionidae, female, male, Narrow-winged Damselflies
Posted in Aperture, Canon 580EX Speedlite, damselflies, digital photography, Panasonic DMC-FZ150, photowalking, wildlife photography | Leave a Comment »
July 22, 2018
Did you notice what I did there? It’s not that I don’t like damselflies. I do. They don’t like me. I’m comfortable identifying some members of two of the three families of damselflies that occur in the mid-Atlantic states (USA), including Family Calopterygidae (Broad-winged Damselflies) and Family Lestidae (Spreadwings). Most members of the Family Coenagrionidae (Narrow-winged Damselflies), not so much.
I remember clearly the time when I was learning to identify dragonflies. I was more than a little confused at first. With persistence, the puzzle pieces started to fall into place sooner than I expected. Same story when I started learning to identify odonate exuviae. Never happened with damselflies, for whatever reason.
For example, here’s a photograph of a damselfly that I photographed recently at an unnamed small creek in Fairfax County, Virginia USA. I made a tentative identification after I edited the photo — I misidentified both the species and gender as an immature male Powdered Dancer damselfly (Argia moesta).
As it turns out, this individual is a female Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly (Argia apicalis). Sincere thanks to my good friend Mike Boatwright, administrator of the Virginia Odonata Facebook group, for correcting my misidentification!
Copyright © 2018 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
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Tags:Argia apicalis, Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly, Family Coenagrionidae, female, Narrow-winged Damselflies
Posted in Aperture, Canon 580EX Speedlite, damselflies, digital photography, natural science, Panasonic DMC-FZ150, wildlife photography | 1 Comment »
August 18, 2017
Many Blue-fronted Dancer damselflies (Argia apicalis) were spotted along Bull Run, Hemlock Overlook Regional Park, Fairfax County, Virginia USA.
Male
The first individual is a male, as indicated by his terminal appendages.
There is a blue morph female Blue-fronted Dancer, therefore the male’s blue coloration is insufficient to identify its gender.
Female
Female Blue-fronted Dancers are polymorphic, including a blue andromorph and a brown heteromorph, shown below. Thanks to Ken Larsen, member of the Virginia Odonata Facebook group, for help in identifying this individual.
Related Resources:
Copyright © 2017 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
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Tags:Argia apicalis, Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly, Bull Run, Fairfax County, female, Hemlock Overlook Regional Park, heteromorph, male, polymorphic, terminal appendages, Virginia
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January 18, 2017
A Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly (Argia apicalis) was spotted during a photowalk along Accotink Creek Trail at Accotink Bay Wildlife Refuge (ABWR), Fairfax County, Virginia USA. An old wooden boardwalk is located near the terminus of the trail.
This individual is a female andromorph, as indicated by her coloration and terminal appendages. Females have a noticeably thicker abdomen than males.
Female Blue-fronted Dancers are polymorphic: andromorph females are blue like males; heteromorph females are brown. Andromorph females tend to be a lighter shade of blue than males of the same species, and do not feature the same blue coloration as males on abdominal segments eight, nine, and 10 (S8-10).
The taxonomic classification of Blue-fronted Dancer is as follows: Order Odonata (Dragonflies and Damselflies); Suborder Zygoptera (Damselflies); Family Coenagrionidae (Narrow-winged Damselflies); Genus Argia (Dancers); Species apicalis.
Related Resources: Excellent digital scans created by Gayle and Jeanelle Strickland. Click on the button labeled “Download file” in order to view full-size version of the graphics.
Editor’s Note: This is the first female Blue-fronted Dancer that I’ve seen/photographed. Thanks to Michael Moore and Ed Lam, members of the Northeast Odonata Facebook group, for verifying my tentative identification. Dr. Michael Moore is an active contributor to the Dragonfly and Damselfly Field Guide and ID App; Ed Lam is author and illustrator of Damselflies of the Northeast.
Copyright © 2017 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
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Tags:Accotink Bay Wildlife Refuge, Accotink Creek, andromorph, Argia apicalis, Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly, Family Coenagrionidae, Narrow-winged Damselflies, polymorphic, terminal appendages
Posted in Aperture, Canon 580EX Speedlite, damselflies, digital photography, natural science, Panasonic DMC-FZ150, photowalking | 1 Comment »
November 21, 2016
These two photos show one of many Blue-fronted Dancer damselflies (Argia apicalis) spotted during a photowalk around Mulligan Pond, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge (JMAWR). This individual is a male, as indicated by his coloration and terminal appendages.
The taxonomic classification of Blue-fronted Dancer is as follows: Order Odonata (Dragonflies and Damselflies); Suborder Zygoptera (Damselflies); Family Coenagrionidae (Narrow-winged Damselflies); Genus Argia (Dancers); Species apicalis.
Related Resources: High-resolution digital scans created by Gayle and Jeanelle Strickland.
Copyright © 2016 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
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Tags:Argia apicalis, Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly, Family Coenagrionidae, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, male, Mulligan Pond, Narrow-winged Damselflies, terminal appendages, wildlife photography
Posted in Aperture, Canon 580EX Speedlite, damselflies, digital photography, natural science, Panasonic DMC-FZ150, photowalking | 5 Comments »
August 3, 2015
Two Blue-fronted Dancer damselflies (Argia apicalis) were spotted during a photowalk around Mulligan Pond, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge (JMAWR). Both individuals are males.
This is the first time I have seen Blue-fronted Dancers in Virginia, although I have seen them in Maryland along the Little Patuxent River, Patuxent Research Refuge (North Tract).
Related Resources: Excellent digital scans created by Gayle and Jeanelle Strickland. Click on the button labeled “Download file” in order to view/save a full-size version of the graphics.
Sidebar: Scientific Classification of Damselflies
The following concise explanation of the scientific classification of damselflies is provided to help the reader understand where Blue-fronted Dancers fit into the bigger picture of the Order Odonata, Suborder Zygoptera (Damselflies).
There are four families of damselflies in the United States of America (USA), although only three families occur in the mid-Atlantic USA: Broad-winged damselflies; Narrow-winged damselflies (a.k.a., Pond Damselflies); and Spreadwing damselflies.
- Family Calopterygidae – Broad-winged Damselflies
- Family Coenagrionidae – Narrow-winged Damselflies
- Family Lestidae – Spreadwings
Note: Family Platystictidae (Shadowdamsels) is the fourth family of damselflies in the USA. Desert Shadowdamsel (Palaemnema domina) is the only member of this family. P. domina is rare, known to occur only in Arizona in the southwestern United States.
1. Family Calopterygidae is comprised of two genera.
2. Family Coenagrionidae is comprised of 14 genera. Three genera are common in Northern Virginia: Argia (Dancers); Enallagma (American Bluets); and Ischnura (Forktails).
- Argia (e.g., Blue-fronted Dancer, Blue-tipped Dancer, Variable Dancer)
- Enallagma (e.g., Big Bluet, Familiar Bluet, Orange Bluet, Stream Bluet)
- Ischnura (e.g., Eastern Forktail, Fragile Forktail, Rambur’s Forktail)
3. Family Lestidae is comprised of two genera.
- Archilestes (e.g., Great Spreadwing)
- Lestes (e.g., Slender Spreadwing, Southern Spreadwing, Swamp Spreadwing)
There are relatively few genera of Broad-winged Damselflies and Spreadwing Damselflies. In contrast, there are many more genera and species of Narrow-winged Damselflies — more species, including many that look similar, makes this family the most challenging to learn!
Related Resource: “The Odonata of North America” is a complete list of both scientific names and common names for damselflies and dragonflies, maintained by the Dragonfly Society of the Americas.
Copyright © 2015 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved.
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Tags:Argia apicalis, Blue-fronted Dancer damselfly, Dancers (Argia), Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, male, Mulligan Pond, Pond Damsels Family, scientific classification, wetlands, wildlife photography
Posted in Aperture, Canon 580EX Speedlite, damselflies, digital photography, education, natural science, Panasonic DMC-FZ150, photowalking | Leave a Comment »