When a Bluet Isn’t Blue: Vermont’s “Newest” Damselfly
August 07, 2018Congratulations, Vermont. You’ve got a new damselfly. Its name is sort of an oxymoron. You know the bluets, right? Those little blue and black damselflies we’re seeing at water’s edge? Yeah, bluets are blue … except when they’re not. Like when they’re red — and the aptly named Scarlet Bluet (Enallagma pictum). Nick Block found one at a pond in southern Vermont on July 4, 2018 (a happy Independence Day, indeed). It becomes Vermont’s 45th known damselfly species (along with 101 known dragonfly species). Read more on the VCE Blog »
Vermont's Most Wanted Dragonflies
May 11, 2018The Vermont Dragonfly and Damselfly Survey (VDDA) is recruiting volunteers to search the state for rare and undiscovered dragonflies and damselflies, which could be flying at your nearest river, wetland or backyard pond. We'll even train people who want to join in the pursuit of these charismatic insects. Read on »
An Emerald Discovered in Victory
September 20, 2017Mike Blust and Josh LIncoln had a plan hatched by a fellow naturalist. Hike deep into the forest to a bog in northeast Vermont and find a rare emerald dragonfly that had never been seen in Vermont. Read about their trials and tribulations that led to elation at discovering this beautiful insect for the Vermont Damselfly and Dragonfly Atlas. Read the story on the VCE Blog »
A Tiger Found in Vermont
August 02, 2017Congratulations, Vermont. You’ve got a new dragonfly — Tiger Spiketail (Cordulegaster erronea). This handsome insect flies on streams and rivers east of the Mississippi, and rarely this far north. Dale Ferland, an angler who likes to poke around rivers, snapped that photo above on Monday from the Black River in Springfield. Learn more on the VCE Blog »
Dragonfly Workshop: June 17 in Montpelier
May 20, 2017Join us for a free workshop on the discovery and identification of damselflies and dragonflies. Whether you’re already an expert or just learning, you’ll learn skills for contributing to this atlas. Better yet, we’ll all enjoy catching, releasing, observing, photographing, or simply watching dragonflies do their thing. The workshop runs 10AM to 2PM at North Branch Nature Center (NBNC) in Montpelier. Pack a lunch. Bring your binoculars and camera. Pack sandals or water shoes or other footwear for wading (which will be optional). Bring a net if you have one (we’ve got extras). To register please send an email to Bryan Pfeiffer. In that way, we can also alert you to any changes owing to foul weather.
Vermont Launches Damselfly and Dragonfly Atlas
April 21, 2017The Vermont Center for Ecostudies today launched an online atlas of damselflies and dragonflies, allowing anyone to report, track, study, discover or simply enjoy the charismatic insects. The Vermont Damselfly and Dragonfly Atlas presents vivid photos, real-time distribution maps and written profiles for 143 species found everywhere from backyard ponds to remote bogs and swamps. Read it on the VCE blog »
Damselfly and Dragonfly Field Course Offered in Maine
March 01, 2017Pick any scene from the drama of life on earth: birth, growth, beauty, courtship, reproduction, betrayal, murder. Find them all expressed in the lives of dragonflies. And now you can join the drama this summer in Maine with Bryan Pfeiffer at Eagle Hill Institute. This seminar will emphasize practical field skills for locating and identifying members of the order Odonata. Morning lectures will feature biology, taxonomy, and ecology. In the field, you’ll practice visual identification, net technique, and (for those interested) photography. Learn more. »
Regional Dragonfly Meeting in VT and NH July 13-16, 2017
February 27, 2017Northern Somatochlora (Striped Emeralds) and other boreal species are among our objectives for the 2017 regional meeting of the Northeast chapter of the Dragonfly Society of the Americas from July 13-16 in New Hampshire and Vermont. Visit the meeting website »
Another New Damselfly for Vermont
September 16, 2016While photographing Odonata at the Waterbury Reservoir, Josh Lincoln found the first confirmed record of a Double-striped Bluet (Enallagma basidens) in Vermont. Congratulations Josh! Read the whole story on the VCE blog »
Vermont iNaturalist Discovers a New Population of a Rare Dragonfly
June 22, 2016As a novice photographer, James Welch enjoys documenting the biodiversity he sees around his home turf. With his camera in hand while walking his dog last week, Welch stumbled upon a rare find in Vermont near the Winooski River, a Midland Clubtail. Read the story »
A New Vermont Dragonfly
August 04, 2014SALUTE THE FLAG. That dragonfly above is now a bit of Vermont natural history — the first Banded Pennant (Celethemis fasciata) ever documented in the state. The perceptive naturalist Laura Gaudette found and photographed him while kayaking on Sadawga Lake in Whitingham Read the blog »
A New Vermont Damselfly
August 14, 2014THE DIVERSITY OF LIFE IN VERMONT, at least what we know of it, is now a bit richer. Nine days after the discovery of a dragonfly not previously known from the state, we have a new damselfly as well: River Bluet (Enallagma anna). Yeah, that’s the beast above – at least an essential part of him. Mike Blust and Laura Gaudette found this damselfly on the Ompompanoosuc River in Thetford on Monday. Read more »