Eastern Amberwing

Across from the Duke Farms Outdoor Education stand I spotted my first Eastern Amberwing of the season, and apparently it was a female. This surprised me a little bit since many times I'll see males emerge/develop first so they can squabble over territory, and after things have settled down a bit (which probably just means more orderly fighting) the females will emerge and hook up with the males with the best territories. (While we'd like to think that having a winning personality is important, female dragonflies seem to be pragmatists looking for the fittest males who control the best territories for laying eggs.)

You might be wondering why this small brown dragonfly is called an "amberwing". As with many species, their name comes from the more flamboyantly colored males. When I saw this dragonfly I couldn't remember what the female Eastern Amberwings looked like, but the size (they're one of our smallest dragonflies) and shape looked about right. It wasn't until I got home that I knew for sure what dragonfly I had spotted.

You might also be wondering about the unusual body position of the dragonfly. She's not doing dragonfly yoga or gymnastics; she does this on a hot day to minimize the sunlight hitting her. (The picture was taken in the early afternoon when the sun was approximately overhead.)

June 25, 2022 at Duke Farms
Photo 211847262, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)


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