Female Emperor Dragonfly Ovipositing

Images of undisturbed subjects in their natural environment. All subject types.

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dunksargent
Posts: 251
Joined: Sun Apr 25, 2010 2:50 pm
Location: Cambridgeshire UK

Female Emperor Dragonfly Ovipositing

Post by dunksargent »

Image

Female Emperor Dragonfly Ovipositing at Swaddywell Pit Nature Reserve near Peterborough UK … August 2019

Nikon 1 J5 / Nikon 1 70-300mm (810mm FF equivalent)

I entered a similar image into a camera club competition recently and the judge did not approve of the ragged looking floating foliage. She claimed she'd been, "chasing and photographing these all summer … but my photos look a lot tidier because i always chose clear water … " She thus awarded a low mark. I'm not too bothered about PAGB approved camera club judges' opinions and often regard their comments as 'entertainment' … but there was time for a question / answer session afterwards and the chairman suggested we could ask questions. I therefore asked the judge if she was aware that Emperors oviposit directly into pond foliage … piercing the stem … often spending several minutes on one plant whilst semi-submerged and 'feeling' for the most suitable part of the plant stem(s) to impregnate … often preferring softer semi-decaying untidy looking plants. I then went on to advise the judge that Willow Emerald Damselflies oviposit directly into tree bark … whence she looked at me in total disbelief.

In another recent competition, a PAGB approved judge commented on a seal pup image … the creature was laying on the beach. The lady judge immediately and in all seriousness stated, "Ahhh! The 'Ahhh' photo of the evening … Look! … He wants his tummy tickled!" Little did she realise that seal bites can be fatal and have resulted in necessary finger amputations due to infections … and sometimes total organ failure due to seal mouth antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

The PAGB* really needs to encourage judges to 'know their subjects' a little better … especially because so many photographers specialise in wildlife /natural history imaging.

Best wishes

dunk

*PAGB … Photographic Alliance of Great Britain http://www.thepagb.org.uk/about/what-we-do/http://www.thepagb.org.uk/services/pagb-judges/
And now for something completely different.

MarkSturtevant
Posts: 1946
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2015 6:52 pm
Location: Michigan, U.S.A.
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Post by MarkSturtevant »

A very fine picture. Judges... what can be done?
Egg laying habits of Odonates are widely varied. Some lay eggs high up on riverbanks, well away from water. Their larvae can spend their entire lives out of water, hunting in leaf debris. We have a damselfly that lays egg on tree branches many meters above the water.
Mark Sturtevant
Dept. of Still Waters

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