If you've been at the coast recently, you might have encountered these dragonflies zipping around, sometimes in large numbers. Wandering Gliders (Pantala flavescens) sometimes appear in our area during late summer, especially with passing weather fronts.
They're impressive fliers, but it's harder to spot them perched on vegetation. This morning we found lots of them roosting in a grassland, and after many attempts we were able to get close enough to one of them for a few photos.
Note the beautiful golden abdomen and the very broad wings.
You can also see Spot-winger Gliders
(Pantala hymenaea) in our area. In fact, in my experience Spot-winged
Gliders are usually more common than Wandering Gliders in Bodega Bay. But
something's different this year and Wandering Gliders appear to be more
common at this time. (To compare the two species, click here.)
4 comments:
Thanks for this Jackie! I've been seeing a few "flocks" of dragonflies in the air headed south, almost as if in migration :) down here at Stinson and was curious about them!
Hi, Hollis!
Yes, I saw more Wandering Gliders in Sebastopol today. They are migrants, and are likely arriving here from farther south, but then they might linger if they find the conditions they're looking for.
P.S. Fun observation -- yesterday we had been hearing a couple of Purple Martins off and on, and then we encountered the Wandering Gliders, I realized that it was possible there was a connection because martins eat dragons! :)
Great photos Jackie! I've also been seeing unusual numbers of Wandering Gliders in recent weeks in north Santa Rosa where I work and near our house outside Petaluma. I saw two perch last week and got some poor iPhone photos - I'm not sure I've ever seen one perched before. I've only seen one Spot-winged Glider this year. Definitely an odd year for gliders!
A fun observation! Although I follow your blog for the marine science, I also enjoy your other observations. Over the years I've noticed that quite a few expert birders also become experts in dragonflies! I'm an intermediate birder, but I'm also drawn to dragonflies and damselflies.
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