The Great Boghaunter Hunt 2015

Female Ringed Boghaunter

After an unsuccessful day of trying to track down a Ringed Boghaunter (Williamsonia lintneri) Dragonfly that would hold still enough for a photograph yesterday, I had success today in finding one.  Its very shiny wings and milky grey eyes indicate that it is fairly young.  I only saw this one and a mating pair that flew away to parts unknown today, so I hope that this simply means that it is still too early for them to be out in large numbers like last spring.  I photographed this one a distance from the bog where they were prevalent last year and where I encountered a few yesterday.  With the continued warm weather this coming week, I shall venture out to Rose Lake later to see if more have emerged.

While I was out yesterday, I ran into two other Boghaunter hunters, Mark O'Brien and Darrin O'Brien.  They had driven up from the Ann Arbor area to see if they could net a specimen or two.  It sounds like a while after I had moved on to another location, Darrin finally captured one in his net.  Mark also gave me some interesting tidbits about the habitat of the Hine's Emerald Dragonfly, an endangered species.  A prime habitat for these is within a few miles of our cabin up north.  I hope that with this knowledge, I can photograph this species in June when I spend a week up north.  It was nice to finally put faces with names I have seen on other websites and blogs related to dragonflies in Michigan.  I am also excited that my meager attempts to photograph insects that I think are fascinating has helped expand the knowledge about a rare species in Michigan.

I also came across other dragonflies again today, including Dot-tailed Whitefaces (Leucorrhinia intacta), more Beaverpond Baskettails, and a few male Common Green Darners (Anax junius).  The Whitefaces are a similar size as the Boghaunters and fly in the same general area, so I chased a few of them today that I had initially hoped were the Boghaunters.

Female Dot-tailed Whiteface Dragonfly

Male Beaverpond Baskettail Dragonfly