I had to get this picture in somewhere on the blog. A little bit of googling brought me to 'O'. Inevitably, while I was away, my Japanese iris began blooming. It is well named: Iris ensata 'Cry of Rejoice'. I scurried out to take pictures, and was joined by this guy. (There's something about the architecture of the bug that makes me think 'guy', even though I know that's about a 50-50 probability.)
I thought my macro capabilities on this camera sucked. Evidently not.
There are many different kinds of dragonflies. This one is pure gold.
Naturally, I have to include a better picture of the iris, too.
great picture. martha's posted dragon fly pictures. they're beautiful but they kind of creep me out.
Posted by: maryse | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 05:39 AM
My JApanese iris have finished blooming. Great shot! It's lily time, all over the place! They loved the rainy weather.
Posted by: Judyj | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 07:06 AM
Fabulous pictures! What's up with all the dragon flies around this year anyway?
Posted by: Carole | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 07:23 AM
Great shots - and great dragonfly links! We've got tons here and I've been meaning to spend time figuring out just who they are.
Posted by: PumpkinMama | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 07:26 AM
Excellent shot!!
Posted by: Cara | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 07:48 AM
Gorgeous! I have lots of dragonflies this year, too. But no Japanese iris. I wish!
Posted by: Norma | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 08:02 AM
Cara couldn't have captures that shot any better!! WOW. The flower is one of my favorites.
Posted by: margene | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 08:23 AM
Wow. That's amazing! We have seen a TON lately too. Supergirl is good at spotting them.
Posted by: Scout | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 08:27 AM
Love your O! Photo and subject. It may be inspiring something. As Margene says today: details later. :)
Posted by: Chris | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 08:40 AM
I saw a golden dragonfly yesterday - no camera - no photo - how serenditipitious that you not only caught it but showed the iris too!
Posted by: cathy | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 09:18 AM
What AMAZING photos, Laurie - I love the dragonfly especially. :)
Posted by: elisa | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 09:20 AM
"O" my goodness!
Posted by: Marcia | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 09:44 AM
I love dragonflies! I know some people are scared or nervous around them, but I think they're just gorgeous. (However, I faint dead away every time Cassie posts one of her damn spider pictures. Different strokes, etc.)
Such lovely red-violet petals. Doesn't it make you want to go and spin something that color? Silk, maybe? ;-)
Posted by: Beth S. | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 10:48 AM
Oh wow--aMAZing photos!!
Posted by: --Deb | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 11:28 AM
What a great entry!
Posted by: Cordelia | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 11:49 AM
I can see why one might think 'guy.' What a great shot! Japanese irises are my favorites, in fact, I have a set of vases and ginger jars that I bought in Japan that are painted with pink irises.....love them!
Posted by: lisa Co. Springs | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 12:37 PM
The silky purple and the gold dragonfly are such a wonderful contrast...veritable eye candy, Laurie!
Posted by: Cindy D | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 02:31 PM
That flower is extremely purple. Great bug pic!
Posted by: claudia | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 04:16 PM
What beautiful pictures.
Posted by: Kris | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 07:23 PM
Gorgeous picture! And I'm glad to see you're back on track with the garden alphabet (the dragonfly totally counts).
Posted by: Chris | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 07:27 PM
do japanese iris bloom later, or am i just a poor schmoe who doens't get to see good irises (is that spelled right?)
that is stunning, as well as the dragon fly pic. too cool!
Posted by: minnie | Monday, July 24, 2006 at 10:00 PM
What a gorgeous dragonfly! Silver _and_ gold.
Posted by: Martha | Tuesday, July 25, 2006 at 03:10 PM
I think I just found a picture to replace the frog-in-the-rose from last year. The dragonfly is amazing.
Posted by: Juno | Tuesday, July 25, 2006 at 05:01 PM
Random - I saw this and thought of you and Mr. E.
http://www.medgadget.com/archives/2006/07/the_only_bone_s.html
Posted by: June | Wednesday, July 26, 2006 at 10:36 AM
This certainly has been the year of the dragonfly, hasn't it? Maybe all that rain? At any rate, there have been a plethera of them in my garden and just spotted your little gold guy perched on a pinkish mauve daylily yesterday. They are so amazing to watch especially after they've caught a bug to eat. The green ones seem to like to perch on my shoulders or forearms as I dead head my daylilies or water my veggies. Motivated to look for a book on dragonflies, damsels and darners and learn more about them and how to properly identify them. Great post and photography!
Posted by: Manise | Wednesday, July 26, 2006 at 01:16 PM
Beautiful pictures! I love irises- and they are also Blogless Sharon's favorite flower.
Posted by: Heather R | Wednesday, July 26, 2006 at 01:39 PM
Pretty iris!
At first quick read, I thought you'd written that that dragonfly reminded you of a guy you know...uh...I was going to ask to hang around with you :)
Posted by: Silvia | Wednesday, July 26, 2006 at 10:45 PM
That is a gorgeous photo -- very cool!
Posted by: Kathy | Thursday, July 27, 2006 at 10:21 AM
I remember being amazed as a kid at all the different colors your basic dragonfly came in: gold, red, blue, iridescent green. Strangely, I see fewer of them nowadays, and more fancier models with striped wings. Makes me wonder how many dragonfly species there are. Then again, they've been around since dinosaur days, so they've had lots of time to make lots of different models.
Posted by: Lucia | Thursday, July 27, 2006 at 12:24 PM
Wow! I was almost afraid to breathe.
Posted by: Dorothy B | Friday, July 28, 2006 at 12:17 AM
I love dragonflies......my yard is full of them! That is probably the best dragonfly picture I have ever seen!
Posted by: Kim | Friday, July 28, 2006 at 06:45 PM
How did I miss this post earlier this week???
That is no guy - that is a female Slaty Skimmer, Libellula incesta. Slaty Skimmers are very common dragonflies in New England, mostly around ponds and lakes.
For more info [insert commercial plug for my workplace here], try A Field Guide to the Dragonflies and Damselflies of Massachusetts, available at http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/nhesp/nhpubs.htm .
And a couple of great websites with dragonfly photos are http://www.odenews.org/ and http://www.dragonhunter.net/ . Enjoy!
Posted by: Lynn | Sunday, July 30, 2006 at 11:21 AM