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Common Whitetail dragonfly (male)

Libellula lydia, Plathemis lydia

Description:

A male Common Whitetail dragonfly perching on a turtle's shell. This prehistoric odd couple was spotted along the boardwalk that goes through the central wetland area at Huntley Meadows Park. The pair reminds me of John the Turtle and the Dookie Bird from the comic strip, "B.C." Thanks to Noah Ranger "NeilD" for identifying the turtle as a Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans). According to Neil, "Older individuals of that species, especially males, tend to turn 'melanistic' or dark-colored like that and lose the distinct colorful markings on their skin." Related Resources: B.C. http://www.creators.com/comics/bc/96386.... Red-eared Slider http://www.virginiaherpetologicalsociety...

Habitat:

Huntley Meadows Park, a 1,425 acre wetland area in Fairfax County, Virginia USA. Related Resource: http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/huntl...

Notes:

Copyright © 2012 Walter Sanford. All rights reserved. www.wsanford.com

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1 Comment

MartinUrban
MartinUrban 11 years ago

Nice Shot !

Geodialist
Spotted by
Geodialist

Virginia, USA

Spotted on Aug 17, 2012
Submitted on Aug 20, 2012

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