This page will be used to keep a record of dragonflies that have been observed at Ruthven. It was first created on May 26th, 2010, and will be updated whenever someone contributes a photo or other reliable record. Enjoy!

Record from May 15th – Green Darner

Message from Brenda Van Ryswyk to Peter Thoem:

Hey Peter,
Very nice catch, what you have there is a Green Darner. Very fast guys!
The key diference between this one and a E. Pondhawk will be size, the Pondhawk will be half the size of your catch here. Darners are some of our bigest odes and the Green Darners do quite commonly have the blue tail part and green thorax part. You are right the thorax on a E. Pondhawk make should be blue to (but sometimes they have a green tint when they first emerge in the spring but never this really striking bright green). Green Darner in particular is one of our first odes of the season as they migrate up from the south so can be quite a bit earlier than our other odes.

Let me know if you see anything else!
Thanks,
Brenda

Green Darner, contributed by Peter Thoem, May 15th

Green Darner, contributed by Peter Thoem, May 15th

Green Darner, contributed by Peter Thoem, May 15th

Green Darner, contributed by Peter Thoem, May 15th