Cibolo Nature Center Bioblitz
Yesterday I participated in a Texas Nature Trackers Bioblitz at the Cibolo Nature Center in Boerne, TX. I led a small group looking for odonates (dragonflies and damselflies). We were very fortunate to have the extremely knowledgable Terry Hibbitts in our group, and we learned a lot from him about odonates and other varied nature topics. What a treat!
Highlights for me included finding a lifer dragonfly, a Pale-faced Clubskimmer. These are not particularly uncommon, but they are inconspicuous and rarely land. I've seen dragonflies I suspected were this species before, but none of them ever landed so I could photograph it and confirm its species. Here's the photo:
Another highlight was finding a robber fly with a Blue-ringed Dancer damselfly in its clutches!
We found 17 species of odonates and were able to photograph 14 of them for iNaturalist observations. Unfortunately even though we observed many Common Green Darners, Black Saddlebags, and a few Wandering Gliders, we were unable to photograph any of them since they were constantly in flight. Here's our list:
Dragonflies
Common Green Darner
Black Saddlebags
Wandering Glider
Blue Dasher
Eastern Pondhawk
Variegated Meadowhawk
Pale-faced Clubskimmer
Damselflies
Blue-ringed Dancer
Powdered Dancer
Kiowa Dancer
American Rubyspot
Smoky Rubyspot
Southern Spreadwing
Double-striped Bluet
Dusky Dancer
Variable Dancer
Springwater Dancer
In addition to the fun we had finding and photographing wildlife, it was also fun teaching folks how to use the iNaturalist app:
All of the observations I made during the bioblitz are attached to this post. Here are the photos by themselves on Flickr:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikael_behrens/albums/72157659305591379
What a fun morning!
Observations
Photos / Sounds
What
Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Sparrowhawks and Goshawks (Genus Accipiter)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Spotless Lady Beetle (Cycloneda sanguinea)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Variegated Meadowhawk (Sympetrum corruptum)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Male. Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Southern Yellowjacket (Vespula squamosa)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Beelzebub Bee-Eater (Mallophora leschenaulti)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Monarch (Danaus plexippus)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Eastern Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Male. Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Male. Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Striped Sweat Bees (Genus Agapostemon)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Pipevine Swallowtail (Battus philenor)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Fiery Skipper (Hylephila phyleus)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus)Observer
mikaelbDescription
It looks like this individual has a full crop! Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Blue-ringed Dancer (Argia sedula)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Powdered Dancer (Argia moesta)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Female. Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Powdered Dancer (Argia moesta)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Male. Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Dusky Dancer (Argia translata)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Male. Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Blue-ringed Dancer (Argia sedula)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Male. Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Smoky Rubyspot (Hetaerina titia)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
American Rubyspot (Hetaerina americana)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Both males, the American Rubyspot is on the left, the Dusky Dancer on the right. Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Swift Setwing (Dythemis velox)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Dickcissel (Spiza americana)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Triorla interruptaObserver
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Blue-ringed Dancer (Argia sedula)Observer
mikaelbDescription
This observation is for the damselfly that the robber fly is eating.
Photos / Sounds
What
Pale-faced Clubskimmer (Brechmorhoga mendax)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
I was excited to find what I suspected was a Pale-faced Clubskimmer flying in a patch of woods. I was even more excited to see it land, which this species rarely does. It landed long enough for me to get this so-so photo. This was a lifer for me!
Photos / Sounds
What
Dusky Dancer (Argia translata)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
American Rubyspot (Hetaerina americana)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Variable Dancer (Argia fumipennis)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Male. Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Blue-ringed Dancer (Argia sedula)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
This Green Anole was finishing up swallowing a damselfly (probably a Blue-ringed Dancer).
This observation is for the damselfly.
Photos / Sounds
What
Springwater Dancer (Argia funebris)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Springwater Dancer (Argia funebris)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Male. Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
Photos / Sounds
What
Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis)Observer
mikaelbDescription
Taken during the Cibolo Bioblitz on 10/10/2015. This was the last day of their twice-per-year week-long Wildlife Field Research Week.
This Green Anole was finishing up swallowing a damselfly (probably a Blue-ringed Dancer).
Comments
Spectacular! :)
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