Common Green Darner - Anax junius

The late Rich Stallcup, renowned birder and naturalist, often referred to the Common Green Darner as  "The Lord of June". This large and striking species is one of the most common and widely distributed dragonflies in North America. The bright green thorax makes it easy to spot as it forages high and low, often near a pond or other body of water. Occasionally you can find one hanging from foliage, like this one at a pond in Tiburon, which allows leisurely study or a photo.

The male is shown above, with a distinctive "t-spot" in front of the huge multicolored eyes, plus a bright green thorax and bright blue abdomen with a dark stripe running down the middle. Here's a crop from the above photo to show more detail:

On September 28th we visited the water treatment ponds at Ellis Creek in Petaluma, California, and were delighted to see  several Common Green Darners in tandem pairs, ovipositing into the mucky stuff at the edge of the pond, giving us our best-ever looks at this species.

The pair moved occasionally to a new location, and almost every time they landed a male Green Darner would divebomb the pair, apparently hoping to get him to release his mate. Feisty creatures, for sure.

There are 5 Anax species in North America, including our largest dragonfly, the Giant Darner, Anax walsinghami, with a wingspan of 4.5".