Peru Odonata

Page 2   

A Web Page by Roy J. Beckemeyer

Last Updated 30 October 2001     

The photo on the right was taken at a stream flowing down the mountain side from the upper right corner of the photo.  This is down the Atalaya road from the Cock of the Rock Lodge.  It is at 13º03.01'S, 71º32.03'W, approx. 1250 m elevation.  Wielding the net is Elias, our assistant driver.  He was surprised at how difficult it was to try to net the Polythoridae: Polythore that we saw flying here whenever the sun would brighten the sky (it never actually got really sunny the day we were there).  It was also difficult to get close enough for a picture as will be seen below by the few photos I did take.  I finally managed to take a male, damaging the fore wings in the process.  Photo by Roy Beckemeyer 9 November 2000.  

Left - a male Polythore species perched.  Photo taken with a 200 mm macro lens used as a telephoto because the damselflies wouldn't let me get close enough for a real macro image.  (Identified from specimen by Dennis Paulson as Polythore boliviana.)

Below right - a female Polythore taken from even further away.  

CLICK HERE FOR A JPEG IMAGE OF A POLYTHORE SPECIMEN

Left  - another view of a male Polythore.  When flying, these damselflies give a very good impression of a butterfly flitting around.  Some species are thought by researchers to be butterfly mimics (Louton, Garrison & Flint, 1996, Odonata of Parque Nacional Manu).  Photos taken 9 November 2000 by Roy Beckemeyer in the cloud forest of southeastern Peru at the creek seen in the photo at the top of the page.

Right and the 2 pictures below  - a libellulid (Brechmorhoga rapax)  also found at this creek.  The males of this species (shown) would fly just above the stream, even in the relatively gray light, darting forward a way, then hovering briefly.  They flew up the deeply shaded portions of the stream as well as the open parts.  When the sun brightened things up, the males would occasionally perch on vegetation as the one just below is doing.  Two specimens were taken.  

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