Cardinal Meadowhawk

As the fall birding season heats up the days are cooler and the dragonflies have mostly mated and laid eggs, while some are migrating south. Last week I watched a male Cardinal Meadowhawk at the pond in Tiburon, and got 2 shots of the same individual in a similar pose, but on 2 slightly different perches. 

I think I like a bit of color in the background. Note how these shots illustrate one of the limitations of digiscoping, which is the very narrow depth of field. Here The head, feet and abdomen are in reasonably sharp focus but the wings are clearly blurred. Here's the same ode on a nearby perch, which allowed a different background:

The bright red color helps with the ID, but the key feature is the 2 white spots on the side of the thorax. The wings have amber along the leading edges, the eyes are red, and the face is….well you'll just have to see it:

Note how the front legs are kept ready to hold or manipulate prey, and are not needed when perching.

Mute Swan - Cygnus olor

An adult Mute Swan, Cygnus olor, and a large "dirty gray" juvenile have been lingering in the first pond at Las Gallinas ponds, San Rafael, for a week or so. Mutes Swans are big birds indeed, a large male can rival the native Trumpeter Swan in size. Length of up to 63", wingspan to 94" and a weight of 25 pounds! This makes the Mute Swan one the largest birds capable of flight, up there is the American White Pelican.

Juvenile Mute Swan, Las Gallinas water treatment ponds

Mute Swan adult in a common swimming "display" - Ellis Creek, Petaluma 

The Mute Swan is a Eurasian Species, with 2/3's of the estimated population of 500,000 found in Russia (or what used to be the USSR). They are protected in some countries, eaten in others, and considered pests by some in many areas where they have been introduced, including northeast US and now California. Lots of people think their beauty outweighs the possible negatvie impacts. Good numbers of Mute Swans of can be seen in Sonoma (Shollenberger, Ellis Creek and Chileno Valley). Fortunately their numbers seem to have stabilized, wheras back east they increase by up to 10% per year. They are aggressive to other birds near their nesting sites, and to humans who get too close. The chicks, or cygnets, are gray, and remain gray through September, just now starting to get white plumage, as in the first photo. White gygnets are known to occur (photo, May 2013, Ellis Creek), presumably from a leucistic gene, and will become white juveniles.

The fully grown juvenile has a gray bill which lacks the knob seen on the adult. The bill here  (below) is starting to show some pink color, and will become orange by winter. Other swans native to our ABA area (Tundra and Trumpeter) have some yellow on the bill.

Taxonmy: 

Order: Anseriformes - Ducks, Geese, Swans, and Screamers

Family: Anatidae - Ducks, Geese Swans

Subfamily: Anseriinae - Swans and Geese

Tribe: Cygnini - Swans - Only 7 species in the world, in 3 genera. Our Tundra Swan (aka Whistling Swan) and Trumpeter Swan, along with the Whooper Swan, are in the genus Olor.The 3rd genus of swans is Coscoroba, with a single species, the Coscoroba Swan of southern South America.

Genus: Cygnus - 3 species, including the Black Swan of Australia/New Zealand, Black-necked Swan of southern South America and the Falkland Islands, and the Mute Swan.

Species: Cygnus olor - Mute Swan. From the above you will note that it is closer to the Black Swan than it is to the Tundra Swan.

Sources: Waterfowl, Madge and Burn, 1988, and Wiki-pedia.

Variegated Meadowhawk - Sympetrum corruptum

After I sent the recent photos of the Common Green Darner, May Chen reminded me that I could have mentioned that this is one of the few dragonfly species that migrates. Another migratory species that we see locally is the Variegated Meadowhawk, Sympetrum corruptum. We saw this one at Ellis Creek the same day we watched the Green Darner.

The Variegated Meadowhawk is very common, and although the colors can vary (duh…), several features make it easy to identify. On the sides of the thorax you can usually see 2 diagonal white stripes, each ending in a bright yellow dot. On the wings you may be able to see that the small stigma on each wing near the end is bicolored, darker in the center and lighter at the ends.  Red veins near the leading edge can be seen in some photos. On the abdomen there is row of white spots, or "portholes" (Manolis), and two dark spots on the top of the 2 segments near the end (8-9). Red/coral rings on the abdominal segments add color and interest, and he has a pretty face as well!

Another view:

May Chen sent this great link to a remarkable TED talk of how a scientist discovered the migration patterns of the Wandering Glider in Asia (from India to Africa!) - it is well worth your time, providing a great example of how a scientist gradually put observations together to paint a full picture:

Charles Anderson: Dragonflies that fly across oceans | Video on TED.com

The Xerces Society has initiated a project for gathering data on 5 species of migratory dragonflies, including the Common Green Darner and the Variegated Meadowhawk. If you'd like to learn about how you can help gather data for the project:

http://www.xerces.org/dragonfly-migration/migration-monitoring/

Brief Taxonomy-

Family Libellulidae is huge, with over 1,000 species wordwide. These are the Skimmers and allies.

Genus Sympetrum is big too, with over 50 species.

Species Sympetrum corruptum, the Variegated Meadowhawk. Seen widely across much of Canada and the US and south into Central America.

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".

Hudsonian Godwit - Limosa haemastica

A juvenile Hudsonian Godwit was spotted  in Napa County, California, on Sept. 11, 2013 and was still present on Sept 15. It forages in a farm pond southwest of Napa at the end of Buchli Station Road, in an area known as Huichica Creek WA, and has been seen by scores of enthralled birders.

The Hudsonian Godwit, Limosa haemastica is a species rarely seen by most. It breeds far to the north, at widely scattered tundra sites in Alaska and Canada, especially around Hudson's Bay. The species in a long distance migrant, capable of flying 5,000 miles non-stop from Canada to southern South America, mostly flying over water down the Atlantic coast. Most Hudsonian Godwits seen in the Pacific Northwest and in California have been juveniles, and are likely from groups nesting in southern Alaska. The wintering sites in South America are  along the coast of Argentina, and down to Tierra del Fuego! The next photo shows the godwit plunging its long bill into the mud of the shallow pond, where it then probed like the Dowitchers. You can see the black tail here, along with the nicely fringed back feathers.

The feeding mehtod of the Hudsoniancan be seen in a short video I took (click on the icons for "HD" and "Full Screen", lower right of the link): http://www.flickr.com/photos/lenblumin/9754810473/in/photostream

Next photo gives a good idea of the bird's size (15"), as it forages near the slightly smaller and more slender Greater Yellowlegs, which is about 14".

My favorite photo was taken as the light improved. The soft brown of the water reflects dried foliage from the bank of the pond, creating a perfect backdrop for the soft hues of the juvenile Godwit. Note the well-defined supercilliary mark, which is widest in front of the eye and stops just over the rear of the eye. Bar-tailed Godwit has a longer stripe here.

The long bill is gently upcurved, much like the Marbled Godwit's. The similar-appearing Black-tailed Godwit has a straighter bill with more color at the base. In the Hudsonian the pink color is restricted to the proximal lower mandible. Juveniles have an unmarked breast, are browner that fall adults, and have more brightly marked backs. The last shot show the Hudsonian with the American Avocet and a Greater Yellowlegs.

Taxonomy:

Order: Charadriiformes - Shorebirds, including Gulls and Terns

Family: Scolopacidae - Shorebirds, including Sandpipers, plus Avocets, Oystercatchers, Turnstones and Phalaropes.

Genus: Limosa - The Godwits. Limosa meaning "muddy", apparently a reference to the coastal mudflats where many of these birds forage. There are only 4 Godwit species in the world. Their relationship to other Scolopacidae is uncertain. Some evidence argued for placing them near the curlews, while other signs pointed to a dowitcher link in the past, or even to the turnstones.

• The largest Limosa is the Marbled Godwit at 18", a bird commonly seen from fall to spring on our coastal tidelands, but not seen as widely in most other areas. Total population about 130,000.
• The 16" Bar-tailed Godwit, a Eurasian species numbering over 1 million, has some 120,000 breeders sited in Alaska along the north and west coasts. It is thought that the rare sighting of Hudsonian Godwits in Australia occur because they follow the Alaskan Bar-tailed Godwits on their epic 7,000 mile journey south across the Pacific.
• The 16.5" Black-tailed Godwit is also Eurasian, numbers about 800,000 and is closest in appearance to the Hudsonian Godwit. Underwings are white, and bill is straighter than that on the Hudsonian. Black-tailed is clearly closest to the Hudsonian and they are referred to as allo-species, or classified as conspecifics.

Species: Limosa haemastica - Hudsonian Godwit. Total population is estimated at 50-70,000. No subspecies are currently recognized, as the disjunct populations are all similar in appearance, but genetic analysis show distinct difference among the separate breeding groups. The Hudsonian is best distinguished from the Black-tailed by the black axillaries and underwing, which we saw briefly when it flew to the other pond nearby. Vagrant Hudsonian Godwits have been seen in various Pacific Island groups, in small numbers. Read more about this rare visitor on Cornell's Birds of NorthAmerica Online, #629, Elphick and Klinka.

To see the exact location on a map you can scroll down a bit more and click on "Napa, California".

White-belted Ringtail - Erpetogomphus compositus

Leslie Flint spotted this male White-belted Ringtail, Erpetogomphus compositius, hunting low near a riffle along Bear Creek, August 28th. She followed it to a perch, where it obliged us by staying a while for photographs. 

The White-belted Ringtail has an well-chosen scienticfic name, as compositus suggests that may have very varied features. Indeed, it looks like a colored drawing filled in by a artistic youngster. Gray face, blue-gray eyes, multi-colored stripes on the thorax, white-rings along the black abdomen, and yellow-orange on the last 3 segment of the abdomen that form the "club" on the male. The female looks similar, but without a clubbed tail end. 

The Ringtails, genus Erpetogomphus, include about 22 species, of which 6 are seen in Western U.S. (Paulson), but only 2 in California (Manolis). Ringtails are restricted to the Americas, whereas other clubtails may have a worldwide distribution. Like most Clubtails, the Ringtails are found along rivers and streams, usually those with a gravel or sandy bed. Most of the 22 species are more green in color that this wild composite. Here's a closer view of the remarkable eyes and face:

Cropped view of the White-belted male, to show face and thorax detail

The Ringtail are just one of about 13 genera of dragonflies that make up the Clubtail family called Clubtails, the Gomphidae. The Clubtails as a family are indeed very diverse, with at least 13 genera seen in the U.S., including Sanddragon, Leaftail, Forktail, Hanging and Pond Clubtail, Common Clubtail, Least Clubtail, Spinyleg, Dragonhunter (gotta love that one!), and Grappletail. All Clubtails have widely separated eyes (check out the close-up above), compared to the eyes of most dragonfly families where the eyes are close and often touch at the midline, and most are found along rivers and streams where they choose a horizontal perch. Worldwide, there are a total of about 90 genera in the Clubtail family, numbering some 900 species. Quite a group to study, although not nearly as numerous as the Skimmer family,Libellulidae.

The Clubtails are one of the 12 families that make up the suborder of Dragonflies, Anisoptera. Families seen in the U.S., besides the Clubtails, are the Petaltails, Darneres, S;piketails, Cruisers, Emeralds, and Skimmers.

American Rubyspot - Hetaerina americana

Exploring Bear Valley Creek (Colusa County) with the able guiding of Leslie Flint, we quickly came upon one of our targets for the day, the American Rubyspot, Hetaerina americana. These good-sized damselflies (about 1.75" long) are as big as some dragonflies, and their colorful broad wings make them easy to spot. They prefer streams and rivers with emergent vegetation, and have been seen in all lower 48 states except WA and ID.

The individuals we saw first were females, with purple-brown abdomen, light stripes on the thorax and a striking purple on the face and eyes. If you don't like Rubyspots then you definitely don't like dragonflies, because they don't come much prettier. The female has color all along the front of her wings, whereas the male (to follow) has large dark red spots at the base of the wings. Both are show-stoppers.

Recently I wrote about the Pond Damsels, a.k.a. Narrow-winged Damsels, a big family. The Rubyspots belong to a smaller family, the Broad-winged Damsels, a.k.a. Demoiselles. The scientific name for the family is Calopterygidae, which means "beautiful wings". (Botany fans no doubt remember that Calochortus means "beautiful hair".) I haven't seen Rubyspots in the immediate Bay Area, but we did see them on a trip to Pine Flat Road with Kathy Biggs, where they were found along the Russian River (Alexander Valley).

Now for the male:

The male American Rubyspot is difficult to describe, as the experience of viewing one is more visceral than one might expect from watching a perched insect. These photos don't capture the intense ruby color of the spot on the inner wing, but that's good, as it allows the eye to better see the rest of his finery. The male lacks the pterostigma (a.k.a. "stigma") so often seen in dragonflies along the outer leading edge of the wing. The female Rubyspot usually shows a small white stigma, although not obvious in the ones I photographed.

Another view:

So, just for review, damselflies, suborder Zygoptera, are small to medium-sized odonates whose eyes are separated and often look like they are on stalks. In dragonflies the eyes are bigger and often touch in the midline. Damsels usually have comparatively thinner abdomens, and their forward and rear wings are similar, whereas dragonflies are often stouter, and the forward wings differ in shape from the rear (that's what Anisoptera literally means). Damsels usually keep their wings folded together when perched, either above the body as in the Rubyspot, or alongside the body. The Spreadwing family of damsels is the exception, you would guess from their name.

Taxonomy: 

Order: Odonata - Dragonflies and Damselflies

Suborder: Zygoptera - Damselflies (5 families: Jewelwings, Spreadwings, Shadowdamsels, Threadtails and Pond Damsels.

Family: Calopterygidae - Broad-winged Damsels, or Demoiselles (Jewelwings). Demoiselle was old french for a young woman, or a "damsel". Here in the U.S. we find the Jewelwings (5) and the Rubyspots (3) to represent the family. But there are 3 other genera of Broad-wings seen elsewhere.

Genus: Hetaerina - Rubyspots. They are mostly tropical, with 37 species. 3 are seen in the U.S. - the other 2 are the Canyon Rubyspot and Smoky Rubyspot.

Species: Hetaerina americana - American Rubyspot. Maybe we should nominate this species as our "national dragonfly", or should we wait until it's recorded in WA and ID?