The Odonata And Their Amazing Eyesight

A blue-bodied, green-faced male Eastern Pondhawk studies me with his huge super-accurate black eyes.

Oh, it was cruel to step out onto my sun-warmed front porch this morning to pick up my New York Times ! The air was kind and scented by the smell of softening soil, the snow had pulled back from the edge of the walk, and the clear lilting calls of a Tufted Titmouse (Wheat! Wheat! Wheat!) definitively proclaimed that Spring Is In The Air!  But sadly, with lungs still too congested to deeply breathe that sweet air without hacking and gagging, I wasn't walking anywhere today except to my breakfast table to read my paper before heading back to the couch.

And there in my paper I found consolation: a wonderful, full-page, full-color piece about some of my favorite critters, the Odonata (damselflies and dragonflies), and their amazing eyesight.  Described as a group of insects that "took to the air long before birds were even on the evolutionary horizon," these damsels and dragons were said to have vision "swifter than any vertebrate's studied thus far." And the rest of the article -- "The Killer Neural Wiring That Links Eyes and Wings" by Veronique Greenwood -- describes in fascinating detail how researchers found that out.   Here's a link to the piece so you can enjoy it yourself:  https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/28/science/jewel-wing-damselfly-dragonfly.html

The opening lines of that article sure drew me in:  "Jewel wing damselflies live up to their names: They dart through the filtered sunlight of ferny stream beds and forests like wands made of brilliantly colored gems."  Yes!  Exactly!  I have seen them myself, fluttering on coal-black wings (I know them by the common name of Ebony Jewelwings), flashing a glittering iridescence that's almost impossible to capture with my camera.  But those opening lines inspired me to search my blog for any photos I might have taken of them.  I did find some, and I even managed to catch a trace of their color.  Here's one:

And right after that photo, I found another of that same male Jewelwing, after it had darted off in a flash and almost immediately dashed back to exactly the very same spot, this time chewing its prey.  Talk about proof of these super-swift predators' prowess, as that article had described!

Of course, as I searched my blog for a Jewelwing photo, I came across many photos of other damsels and dragons.  What a bunch of gorgeous critters they are!  So I dredged some photos from out of the depths of computer storage to enjoy them once again.  Sadly, most of my damselfly photos are blurred, but I did find one of a coppery-colored Spreadwing (species unknown by me) whose glass-clear wings sparkled with iridescence.

And here was one of the Bluets that actually landed and sat still for the picture taking. Such a beautiful, vivid blue!

The dragonflies are often easier to photograph: one, because they are bigger, but also because they flutter less and perch longer, and they often return again and again to the very spot you have frightened them from, if you just wait, creeping closer between each return. And oh, is it worth the wait! Some are so colorful!  For example, what a dazzler this guy is, a male Calico Pennant with valentine-heart-colored markings. Even his stigma are red, as well as the veins in his wings.

And the female Calico Pennant is equally colorful, although marked with schoolbus-yellow in the same places her mate sports red.

The Blue Dasher has the most beautiful turquoise-colored eyes as well as a tiger-striped thorax.

The Autumn Meadowhawk has glossy brown eyes and an abdomen red as sun-ripened tomatoes. The stigma are red, as well.

The male Slaty Skimmer is a pretty powdery blue, with a glossy black face, while his mate is mostly brown.

In the case of the Eastern Pondhawk, however, the female is the more vividly colored, a truly unforgettable Kelly green.

The male Eastern Pondhawk might be mistaken for that Slaty Skimmer pictured above, since both have bodies of powdery blue.  But if this guy would turn and look at us, we would see that his face is the same Kelly green as the rest of his mate's body is.  You can get a close look at his face in the photo at the top of this blog.

And here's another look at that male Eastern Pondhawk's green face, the photo taken when he'd landed on my knee and stayed there studying me for the longest time.  I was able to look him right in his bulbous black, super-accurate eyes and even marvel at what looked like a mustachioed "upper lip." The sight of that mustache made me laugh. And I swear that dragonfly opened his mouth and laughed right back at me!