Meadowhawk, head-on
Sympetrum sp.
Meadowhawk · Upstate New York · 17 August 2025
A red meadowhawk perched dead centre on a seed head in an Upstate meadow, facing the lens. Meadowhawks are the late-summer dragonflies of the northern meadows and pond edges, and a seed head in the open sun is a typical hunting perch.
Head-on shows what a dragonfly's head mostly is: two compound eyes so large they meet on top, each with something like thirty thousand facets, giving it close to a full sphere of vision. It can see you coming from behind. The red is a mature male; the females and young are yellow-brown, and several near-identical species share the colour.
Birds, insects, plants and other wildlife, mostly from Brooklyn, with some from further afield.
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