The Aerialist Extraordinaire

This creature spends a majority of its life under water. Even though it is known as a Nymph at this stage of its life, its actual appearance is quite unlike our popular images of nymphs from classical paintings. In fact it looks most fearsome, and is armed with ferocious jaws with which it catches all kinds of aquatic bugs, including other nymphs. One clue to its identity is that different species prefer a wide variety of water, ranging from clear flowing streams in the mountain forests to stagnant fetid pools in urban wastelands.

It also breathes through its backside ! I promise I haven't made that up. It actually has specialised gills located in its rectum.

After spending a few years in this underwater environment it suddenly does something miraculous.

One night it emerges above the surface. By morning it has transformed itself and taken to the air, the sun glinting on its bright jewel-like body and transparent wings ! Comparable in beauty to many butterflies and birds.

Yes, it is now an adult Dragonfly.

Dragonflies and Damselflies are an ancient order of insects - Odonata. They pre-date the Dinosaurs which roamed earth from 230 million to 65 million years ago. Dragons were one of the earliest creatures to take to the air. And they are indeed 'aerialists extraordinaire' even today.

Who hasn't wondered at their flying skills - going from a rock-steady hover to a sudden acceleration, to a 180 degree turn at top speed, to a desperate gravity-defying manouvre avoiding a bee-eater's attack.

Dragons have two pairs of wings. Each pair is uncoupled from the other (unlike birds and butterflies) , enabling it to do what it does in the air.

They are predators of midges, gnats, flies , mosquitos.

One of the common dragons of Jaipur ( and probably of many other urban areas) is the Granite Ghost. Quite unobtrusive, flashing around like a grey dart in your peripheral vision low to the ground. It prefers bricks, mortar, stone and camouflages extremely well on these surfaces all around us in the cities. It is also a champion mosquito killer.

Here are two images of the Granite Ghost ( Bradinopyga geminata) ...

You would almost always see them perched on the floor, or on walls, etc. But one image that I took at home does show it perched on a twig (at twilight) which I think is rare.

Next let's have a look at the Long-legged Marsh Glider ( Trithemis pallidinervis). This is slightly larger than the ghost. While we are told that you would usually find these in marshes, in fact the distribution in my opinion is in quite varied habitats. It is not common and the few individuals that I have photographed have all been on trees. At perch the 'long legs' are noticeable.

A confusingly similar-looking species is pictured below.

Red Marsh Trotter (Tramea basilaris) - female

The Green Marsh Hawk (Orthetrum sabina) is an attractive dragon. They are pugnacious, actively chasing away other species of dragons from their 'beat'. In Jaipur they are fairly common near water bodies of all sorts. Observe this character facing off against another dragon which has usurped its favourite perch on a twig overhanging the surface of the water.

The Black Marsh Trotter ( Tramea limbata) is another dragon usually seen patrolling over water bodies. Just when you think it will never settle down and allow you a shot, it does just that ! And poses obligingly, totally unconcerned as you click away from as close as two feet, for minutes at a time.

Dragonflies are difficult to identify correctly even if you are able to get good photographs. Apart from a few scholarly papers and lists of the several hundred species to be found in India, there is no single checklist with photographs. Adding to the confusion is the fact that many dragons are dimorphic (ie., the males and females have different appearances).

It would appear that Jaipur should be (conservatively) represented by at least 50 different species of dragons and damsels. My personal list is only 20 or so. Certainly a long way to go - look forward to posting pictures of more species soon. Do correct me if I have mis-identified any of the dragons in this post.