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22 December 2013

Slender Skimmer– Dhahran Hills


The dragonflies of Dhahran Hills are about in good numbers at the moment but they are finding it hard to find any water to use. This Slender Skimmer Orthetrum sabina also known as Oasis Skimmer was flying around the only small patch of reeds on the outside of the fence to the Percolation Pond. It regularly used twigs and reed stems to rest on and the photo below was taken with a 600mm lens and I had to walk back several metres to be able to focus on the insect but the resulting image turned out quite well.
Slender Skimmer
The slender skimmer is a green to greyish-yellow dragonfly with the thorax and abdomen striped black. The abdomen is swollen towards the base and there is a small dark spot present at the base of the hindwing. The adult dragonfly spends a few days to several months feeding and maturing where the dragonfly normally develops its full adult colour. The slender skimmer is renowned for feeding on other dragonfly species, including some species larger than itself. It is an extremely widespread species occurring from south-eastern Europe to Japan and south to Australia and Micronesia. They occupy a broad range of slow-flowing and still water habitats, from ponds to wet rice fields and marshes and are very tolerant of disturbance sometimes occupying temporary water sources.