The whitetail deer saw me long before I saw her. She bolted across the intermittent marsh, splashing water up over her head as she ran off.
I’ve encountered a deer on each of the last four visits to the vernal marsh off 48th avenue in the Allegan Forest. Maybe it is the same one, maybe not. But it is usually near the edge of the marsh and usually storms across it, making quite a commotion.
Sorry, no pictures of the deer. My slack and sleeping senses have been too dull to capture the deer in flight. I have been sincerely surprised each time this event happens, until I realize that it’s just like a few days ago.
Anyhow, I go to this place to take pictures of insects… particularly dragonflies. In that respect, it did not disappoint over the last week.
The Dot Tailed Whitefaces are still out in force. I am amazed that I had not seen this species before, but looking over my older images they don’t come up. Although tye are smaller than many of the dragonfly species prevalent now, these plain black insects are still around.
Red Meadowhawks are back and growing in numbers. They will rule the next few months. I used to say that when the red dragons appear, fall is in the air – but these last few years have shown me htat they can come out in early summer. I expect that they will stay around for a while.
Otherwise, the blue darners, twelve spotted skimmers, window skimmers, and spangled skimmers are still abundant. And, of course, the blue dashers are still ruling the roost, and in several of the field sI visited were the most prominent dragonfly.
The sandy fields in the Allegan Forest are surprisingly verdant and green – thanks to the crazy weather we’ve been having (which includes a lot of heavy storms.) Walking back to the car after shooting near the intermittent marsh, I startled a young doe that was bedded down and hiding in the tall green grass and vetch. It was quite a sight to see this little deer – no larger than a terrier – scramble off to the wood line.
More images:
This entry was posted by Mark C and filed under Insect Photography, Michigan, Allegan State Game Area, Allegan Forest, Dragonfly Photography, Odonata Photography.