- Curious about something you saw while walking in the woods? Spot the coolest bug ever? The prettiest flower and butterfly? Stumble on a rock and found a fossil? Or was it? This is the place to show your discoveries and share in the knowledge of the natural world right outside our doors. Join in the fun everyday at The Daily Bucket.
April 2014
This dragonfly landed on my deck the other day. The beautiful coloration immediately caught my eye. And the size of it - right at 4 inches from head to tail and a 5 inch wingspan. But I knew right off that something was wrong it as the tail was drooping over the edge.
After realizing it was not going anywhere, I ran inside for camera and moved the dragonfly around for better views. Closing in on the head ...
and then the tail ...
turn left ...
More photos below the fold (all are in lightbox format if you wish to zoom in) as it turns right and I start to see the damage.
Turning the dragonfly to the right I see the abdomen is caved in some. I also noted that it would occasionally swipe one of its right legs over its eye.
Flipping it over shows how bad off it was. That one leg was the only one that could move.
I'm going out on the proverbial limb here and guess that it was being attacked by parasites from inside. That or it ran into something. Any insights from y'all is greatly appreciated.
I'd rather remember the dragonfly like this --
It now resides in my freezer along with other insects and such that I find from time to time. Unfortunately the bright colors are gone.
And The Daily Bucket is now open for your thoughts and observations. I'll be in and out all day as I have the grandson over to play. Then later today it's off to be with my friend PH whose sister just got hit with stage-4 lung cancer. She is at a loss as they all cope with this. Her sister was a lifelong smoker. Hey kiddies - don't smoke!
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