Mating Dragonflies and the Circle of Life

Hmmm, how will I endure
the long months of winter that still lie ahead?

It is that time of year
again – mid January and a few days removed the first big snowstorm of the year.
The sun is on hiatus, aside from an occasional glimpse, and the temperature
yo-yoing up and down every other day. Alas, there is at least as much winter
ahead of us as behind us.

The January blues have
taken hold. The only way I know to beat the funk, short of escaping south for a
vacation which my bank account precludes, is to delve into my treasure trove of
winged wonder photos from summers past. I like to think of it as a virtual
vacation financed by my imagination and miles traversed through field and
forest.

Today I am highlighting
mating dragonflies. These winged dragons link up briefly in a makeshift loop when
instinct tells them the time is right.

Clubtails
are notoriously difficult
to definitively ID. I will confess that I cannot determine which of the many Clubtails these two are. But that only
adds another layer of mystery to their ritual which was carried out in the
shelter of verdant greenery in early June.

In this photograph, we
can see how the suspended Clubtail
has wrapped its filament legs around its mate’s abdomen to do its part in
completing the loop. Their pose appears laboured but graceful at the same time
as their bodies become one for the time it takes to do what nature demands.

It was already September
when these Canada Darners responded
to the call. At first glance, it appears they are suspended in air in a leafy
bower. But a closer look reveals that one is doing the heavy lifting by
clinging to a bushy twig by its slender black legs that look too fragile for
the purpose.

Their impressive,
translucent angel wings, adorned with checkered black markings, are on full
display – perhaps to stabilize them in their precarious perch. The pose will last
only a few minutes after which they will separate and flit away.

I really should steer
clear of the cliché that presents itself. But I am unable to resist. Dragonflies
interlaced in their mating loop personify the circle of life in all things
great and small.

~  Now Available Online
from Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites of
Passage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is also
the author of Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which
was a double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s
website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .

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