A female Widow Skimmer Dragonfly perches on a dried weed stalk
A female Widow Skimmer dragonfly (lacks white wing patches) perches on a plant stalk in a weedy stand of growth in a drainage ditch. Although it is common in most of Massachusetts, the Widow Skimmer is rare to absent on Cape Cod and the offshore islands. Look for Window Skimmers foraging in fields far from ponds, lakes, marshes, and soggy areas, although they must have access to water for breeding sites. Females deposit eggs in flight, dipping the tips of their abdomens in water to release eggs. I see them most often when I mow the meadow. The Widow Skimmers seem to follow my tractor. Are they attracted to the tractor or to the insects that I might be stirring up?
In addition to white patches on both forewing and hindwing, the male Widow Skimmer has bluish bands on the back of the lower abdomen. The females and immature male have a pale mid-dorsal stripe and a yellow abdomen with a black stripe down the back.
