This member of the Common Skimmer Family, Libellulidae, had just come out of the water as a naiad and is now developing its final body and wings. It isn’t often that I find a newly transformed dragonfly clinging to an aquatic plant. Most of the time these “skimmers” are on the wing, flashing to and fro. So a close-up photo is somewhat rare.
See also further general information about dragonflies, and about the White-tailed Dragonfly.
Copyright © 2007 William T. Hathaway.