Location 1: Helicopter Pad Lake, Nam Nao National Park, Petchabun.
Date: Saturday, 26th May, 2012.
Weather: Overcast for most of the day, then torrential rain (stopping me visiting the headquarters)
Weather: Overcast for most of the day, then torrential rain (stopping me visiting the headquarters)
Expectations of recording additional species (for my list): Low
Leech bites: 16 (my record, unfortunately!)
A vast improvement over last month's weather, May turned out to be OK. Though it eventually turned to heavy rain (it seems really early this year), I managed to spot four new additions for the year, and one new species for the lake (though I know Noppadon Makbun has previously spotted the species there). New for the year, are: Ceriagrion chaoi, Rhyothemis plutonia, Rhyothemis triangularis and Trithemis festiva. New for the lake is Indothemis carnatica. Like my previous visit, as I was preparing to visit the river at the headquarters, the heavens opened and it would have been a pointless task visiting. I will return in a couple of weeks and make a beeline for the headquarters.
Here are a few decent photos I managed to get last time out:
These are the best natural photos of Rhyothemis plutonia I have taken. He dropped down right in front of me, as the winds picked up. He held onto a strand of grass for dear life ... even though it was extremely windy, these came out very well indeed.
I saw two male Ceriagrion chaoi on this day, and this one was happy to let me shoot away in front of him. Luckily, though it was windy, I managed to get decent shots.
There were many many females of Pseudothemis jorina. I saw more females today than I have seen in all my time in the field. They were very difficult to get anywhere near though.
Nam Nao Helicopter Pad (added species from the last visit, bold; new species for the lake, blue; species not seen from last visit, red)
Fam. Coenagrionidae
Aciagrion tillyardi (Laidlaw, 1919) ♂ ♀ [common]
Agriocnemis femina (Brauer, 1868) ♂ ♀ [common]
Agriocnemis nana (Laidlaw, 1914) ♀♂ [very common]
Agriocnemis pygmaea (Rambur, 1842) ♂ ♀ [common]
Argiocnemis rubescens rubeola Selys, 1877) ♂♀ [♂ 2, ♀ 1]
Ceriagrion chaoi (Schmidt, 1964) ♂ [2]
Ceriagrion indochinense Asahina, 1967 ♀♂ [uncommon]
Ischnura senegalensis (Rambur, 1842)
Onychargia atrocyana Selys, 1865 ♂ ♀ [extremely common, especially copula]
Pseudagrion rubriceps rubriceps (Selys, 1876)
Fam. Platycnemididae
Coeliccia chromothorax (Selys, 1891) ♀♂ [2, 1]
Copera ciliata (Selys, 1863) ♂ ♀ [extremely common]
Copera marginipes (Rambur, 1842) ♂ [common]
Fam. Protoneuridae
Prodasineura autumnalis (Fraser, 1922) ♂ ♀ [extremely common]
Fam. Gomphidae
Ictinogomphus decoratus (Selys, 1854) ♂ [common]
Fam. Libellulidae
Acisoma panorpoides panorpoides (Rambur, 1842) ♂ ♀ [uncommon]
Brachydiplax farinosa (Krüger 1902) ♂ ♀ [♂ common]
Brachythemis contaminata (Fabricius, 1793) ♂ ♀ [common]
Diplacodes trivialis (Rambur, 1842) ♂ ♀ [fairly common]
Indothemis limbata (Selys, 1891) ♂ ♀ [♂ extremely common]
Indothemis carnatica (Fabricius, 1798) ♂ [2]
Neurothemis fulvia (Drury, 1773) ♂ [uncommon]
Orthetrum chrysis (Selys, 1891) ♂ [fairly common]
Orthetrum sabina sabina (Drury, 1770) ♂ [common]
Pseudothemis jorina Förster, 1904 ♂♀ [common]
Rhodothemis rufa (Rambur, 1842) ♂ [1]
Rhyothemis plutonia (Selys, 1883) ♂♀ [♂ very common, ♀ 1, part of a copula]
Rhyothemis triangularis (Kirby, 1889) ♂ [♂ 3]
Rhyothemis plutonia (Selys, 1883) ♂♀ [♂ very common, ♀ 1, part of a copula]
Rhyothemis triangularis (Kirby, 1889) ♂ [♂ 3]
Tholymis tillarga (Fabricius, 1798) ♂ [fairly common]
Trithemis aurora (Burmeister, 1839) ♂ ♀ [extremely common]
Trithemis festiva (Rambus, 1842) ♂ [2]
Next visit: mid June
(primarily to visit the river at the headquarters)
