In the first image, you see what some folks call a pill bug, but I have called them roly polies since childhood. What most folks don’t know about these little guys is that they are not insects. Instead, they are distant cousins to insects because they have an exoskelton and jointed appendages. They are an ancient lineage having been around since the Carboniferous period of the Paleozoic era which began some 300 million years ago. Pill bugs and their relatives during their long history began as ocean dwellers and some of them like our little friend here transitioned to living on land. Armadillidium vulgare in the family Armadillidiidae are also new comers to North America having been brought from the Mediterranean where their kind originated. You can read more about them at Animal Diversity.org.

In the second and third images, you see a member of the genus Araneus. The Arachnids or spiders and their kin, have been around a very long time. The oldest fossil Arachnid existed some 420 million years ago. The spiders appeared in the fossil record some 165 million years ago. (Wikipedia)

Spiders began as land dwellers and lived like tarantulas and wolf spiders of today making their living as ambush or pursuit predators. The web builders came along much later. Somewhere in this individual’s life, it lost a leg to a predator or something trapped in its web that could bite.

The last image is of a White-tailed Dragonfly, Plathemis lydia. Dragonflies have been flying around earth’s freshwater environments for 300 million years. This dragonfly is a member of the Libellulidae, or the Skimmer family. Libellulidae is the largest dragonfly family numbering 1000 species worldwide. 109 species in North America.

All of the above are Arthropods because they wear their skeleton on the outside, and possess jointed appendages and other body parts. They are living fossils of ancient animal lineages that first left the sea to live on land. They are each beautiful in their own way and beneficial to their to their ecosystems.

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Dragonflies are truly valuable parts of freshwater environments. They spend the longest part of their lifecycle as underwater predators that feed on the larvae of mosquitos and other insects. As adults, they prey on mosquitos and other flying insects. Without their help, we would be covered in mosquito bites and swatting annoying flies.

In the image above is a member of the species Libellula saturata, or Flame Skimmer. I was astounded when I first saw this species because I had never seen an orange one before.

In this image you can see the first 3 pairs of legs that are shorter than the rearmost legs. They form a basket when the dragonfly is in flight which they use to capture prey.

Notice the huge compound eyes that meet at the top of the head. This is a characteristic of the Libellulidae or Skimmer family. This family has over 1000 species and is found all over the world. In North America there are 109 species in this family. Also, notice the formidable mouth parts for munching mosquitos and annoying flies.

Here is an example of Libellula pulchella, the Twelve-spotted Skimmer. Notice the color patches on the wings. These and the spots on the abdomen help identify this species.

Here is the same species from a different angle. Dragonflies are prone to perching where they can warm up in the sun. This photograph was taken on a cool April morning. When they are warm, they are harder to approach and photograph. This makes them a challenge.

This is and example of a female White-tailed Skimmer. It is a Libellulid as well. Look at the eyes, they meet at the top of the head.

Here is a male of Plathemis lydia, or White-tailed Skimmer. Notice the differences between the abdominal coloration on the male and female. Dragonflies can be sexually dimorphic which means the males and females while similar in body and wing can look very different from one another in terms of coloration.

This an example of Phanogomphus exilis in the Club Lancet family, Gomphidae. Notice the eye color and wing placement on the body. This species also has yellow accent striping on the body and tail.

As you might of guessed, I love dragonflies because they eat mosquitos and other biting flies. I also love them because of their colors and the challenge they present in photographing them. What you have seen here is the culmination of some judicious stalking and being lucky enough to catch these guys before they flew off.

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This fella showed up in my patio garden one September morning and remained long enough for me to fetch my camera, change to my close-up lens and take pictures for about 5 minutes. I was astonished by the color of this dragonfly as I had never seen one like it before. When I looked this fella up on Wikipedia, I found he was in the family Libellulidae, the skimmers, and that this native to western North America was a member of  the species Libellula saturata.

I admire dragonflies for their beauty and the fact that they have existed for millions of years. Additionally, their offspring consume mosquito larvae, and as winged adults they prey on mosquito and other flying insects. You can see how their first two pairs of legs form a basket shape which they use to scoop up prey as they fly.

The post Flame Skimmer (Libellula saturata), Do Dragonflies Come in Orange!!? appeared first on GJM Nature Media.