45 Minutes Down at the Lake

If there weren't so many responsibilities! But I always have papers to evaluate, classes to plan, and email to answer, and the hours that I spend at work slip away. Despite promises to myself, despite packing the heavy camera, I haven't gotten down to Lake Pamela. Yesterday, I finally made a real effort, but because of schedule constraints, I had only 45 minutes.

At 2 p.m. the sun was already past its zenith and beginning its descent. Since I had chosen to walk counter clockwise, I had to squint the entire trip around, which made spying small things more difficult. Our lowest temperatures have been in the 50s, so I thought that the dragonfly population would still be strong, but I was wrong. There were still specimens, but fewer in number and species. I didn't see a single four-spotted pennant, my favorite bug of 2006. The blue dashers were battling at the water's edge and saddlebag pairs flying in tandem were abundant.

I did manage to capture a pair of Rambur's forktails, insuring future children for me to photograph!


And luckily I noticed this black saddlebags perched:


The picture isn't good for identification purposes because the markings on the hind wings aren't visible, but I love those giant eyes looking right at the lens. Black saddlebags are not handsome dragonflies, but at least this guy has a little personality, and I have one more species to add to my capture list!