Fly By

I watched this dragonfly (Libellula saturata) as he hunted small flying things in the garden. In about 20 minutes he caught and devoured maybe 12 or 15. It's interesting to see how he lands on his perch with such precision, always in the same attitude, then just after alighting he adjusts the angle of his body to the stick--just so with a self-assured little tug like a sailor setting a knot in the rigging or a pilot fixing the trim. You can hear the sound of the dragonfly's wings chattering--just--above the jet roaring overhead but the flies rarely sense the hunter until it's too late.