230: Podolestes coomansi Lieftinck, 1940

         Number: 230 / Family: Argiolestidae / Genus: Podolestes

Species: Podolestes coomansi / Blue-spotted Flatwing*

Province(s) sighted: Narathiwat, Yala

Habitat: Peat Swamp Forest and Swampy ponds, Streams

In flight: August / Sightings (by me): Rare

Species easily confused with: Podolestes orientalis 

*As there is no common name, I have used 'Blue-spotted' from the Thai name (as it has blue spots along the abdomen) and given the genus the name 'Flatwing', creating the name 'Blue-spotted Flatwing'. 

While walking through natural peat swamp in Narathiwat outside of Sirindhorn Peat Swamp Forest searching for odes. It was initially very quiet for species and individuals were in low numbers. But one I did eventually bump into was an extremely skittish species Podolestes coomansi, commonly known as Blue-spotted Flatwing. I was incredibly happy to see it... or rather Noppadon Makbun saw it first. I managed to get a few shots away, but it was very, very difficult and would fly away at the slightest movement. Over the course of the next few days in Narathiwat and Yala, the species would pop up now and then but in very low numbers. I managed to get a good shot of the male and a record shot of the female. I saw 2-3 females but they were even more skittish than the males!

The Male

The male is uniform dull brown but punctuated with sky blue stripes and spots along the abdomen and the thorax. It really is a stunning species and was noted by Noppadon that it was more brightly coloured than the ones spotted at the peat forest in Surat Thani.

The Female

The female is very similar to the male, but has a more prominent blue patch at the end of its abdomen and is far more skittish than the male. This is the best I could get on the trip.

163: Drepanosticta jurzitzai Hämäläinen, 1999

Number: 163 / Family: Platystictidae / Genus: Drepanosticta
Species: Drepanosticta jurzitzai / Jurzitza's Shadowdamsel
Habitat: Deep Forest Area of Upland Streams 
 Province(s) sighted: Chantaburi
In flight: April / Sightings (by me): 2 males
Species easily confused with: N/A

Towards the end of a very fruitful trip, I was making my way back down the nicely laid out path of the waterfall at Khao Kitchacut NP. Really tired with burning legs from 2 /12 days of walking in and around streams and slippery boulders, I almost fell into an old hollowed out log between levels 7-8. Amazingly it spooked a damselfly I had missed on the way up. I knew straight away that it was a new species. I also knew it was a new genus for me though I wasn't sure of the species. I saw him land about 5 metres away. I edged forward and set myself up. Perfect ... ready ... focus ... bollocks! A female P. khaosiodaoensis spooked it and it seemed to fly away. I searched four about 20 minutes in really dull territory and almost gave up. Then I thought, "Maybe he has returned to that log." Amazingly, there he was. Inside his log. Now he was happy for me to snap away though the lighting was terrible and it took me a long time to get anything different. Once I was happy I had got good enough photos I said goodbye to him and went in search of his girlfriend. I didn't find her, but I did spot a second male at another log close by. When I returned home, I did a little research and it was clearly Drepanosticta jurzitzai, a species that seems to be only known from that location (though this may have changed). According to Noppadon Makbun, it is also early for the species ... maybe why there where no females to be found. 

The Male

It is instantly recognisable with its blue dorsal patch covering S9-10. They are easy to get near and photograph too.

 I will return one day in search of the female, though I will probably go a little later in the year when they may well  be more abundant.

 

120: Dysphaea gloriosa (Fraser, 1938)

Number: 120 / Family: Euphaeidae / Genus: Dysphaea 

Species: Dysphaea gloriosa

Common name(s): Glorious Velvetwing
Thai name(s): N/A
Habitat: Forested Rocky Streams 

Location(s): Chaiyaphum, Nakhon Ratchasima, Petchabun, Loei, Trat 

In flight: April-July / Sightings (by me): Locally common

Species easily confused with: Euphaea o. ochracea

*As there is no common name, I took the species name 'gloriosa' meaning 'Glorious' and 'Velvetwing' being the most consistent name given to the genus, Dysphaea.

A species that confused me so much was Dysphaea gloriosa. It looks so much like Euphaea ochracea, it is unbelievable. But when I saw it fly, it looks so different and thought that it must be a new species. It is bigger, the wings are solid ochre and it flies completely differently (the wings tend to move in a circular motion). The caudal appendages are much longer too. I sent photos to Noppadon Makbun and he confirmed that it was Dysphaea gloriosa, which I have named the Glorious Velvetwing, so a new species for me! Since then I have seen this species at numerous locations and can be the dominant species.

Anyway, it taught me a lesson. If you see a damselfly that looks slightly different... take lots of photos as it might be a new species!

The Male

It really is a stunning river dweller that has very long wings and are an obvious ochre colour. It is easily confused with Euphaea ochracea but the wings and the way it fly make it easier to pick out in the field.

Interestingly, this male has a distinct black tip and the whole population (15+ specimens) at a small stream on Koh Kood, Trat, were all the same. 

Here he is in a more natural position. They tend to 'hug' whatever they land on (large logs and rocks)...

Male in the hand. This shows how much larger it is than E. ochracea.

The Copula

Here is my only ever sighting of a tandem, which I saw at Tat Ton National Park in Chaiyaphum where there the species is abundant. Only a record shot, but very hard to see this.

The Female

I did manage to spot a solitary female on a cable high above a road in Phu Khieo Wildlife Sanctuary as it started to pour down. Here is the best I could get using a 400mm lens.

Here is how I first saw it... just as the rains came.

The 'Teneral' Female ???

When I visited a small stream near a resort I was staying at recently (8/7/12), I noticed a number of males. Very early the following morning I noticed a newly emerged female. Unfortunately, Euphaea masoni was also present. However, I have seen a number of females of that species and this one seemed larger. I could be wrong, though. Can anyone shed light on the matter? I know identifying teneral specimens can be very tough.