Spiketails: Angel Wings of Gossamer Up Close and Personal

Hmmm,
will I be out in the fields in time to marvel at the angel wings of gossamer
once more?

There
is at last a glimmer of light on the horizon in this time of COVID-19 lockdown.
The much anticipated flattening of the curve is finally happening. In turn, the
first signs of a new version of spring is peeking its head out of the
quarantine winter we have been caught in.

So it
seems appropriate to focus the latest Up
Close and Personal post on my favourite dragonfly species: Spiketails. They are by nature secretive
and hard to find not unlike we all have been of late. There are three found in
this area.

TWIN-SPOTTED SPIKETAIL

Named
after the paired yellow spots on the abdomen. Hard to find, but reliably hangs
out in early summer around the foot bridge at my favourite summer haunt.
Exquisite translucent wings on this perfect specimen.

Angel
wings of gossamer. Light passes through them as if through an invisible prism.

ARROWHEAD SPIKETAIL

Named after
the dramatic yellow arrow-shaped spots on the abdomen. Uncommon in these parts.
In my many years of dragonfly sleuthing, I have only come across two of them.
This one clings precariously on a tiny weed stem.

Angel
wings of gossamer. Almost lost in the soft blur of greenery.

DELTA-SPOTTED SPIKETAIL

Named
after… Well, to be honest, I don’t really understand the name. But yes,
challenging to distinguish from the Twin-Spotted.
Consider it the slightly smaller cousin. This one perches in picturesque
fashion on the smooth bark of a tree trunk.

Angel
wings of gossamer. Delicate lacework like the finest cotton.

Beauty can be a
contagion too. No social distancing here. Get up close and personal. It is
allowed.

~  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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