204. Vestalis amethystina Lieftinck, 1965

Number: 204

Family: Calopterygidae

Genus: Vestalis

Species: Vestalis amethystina

Common name(s): Common Demoiselle

Synonym(s): N/A

Habitat: Fairly large exposed shallow river (but hidden in the foliage)

Province(s) sighted: Trail at the Research Centre, Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary (Narathiwat) 

Sightings (by me): Two males

In flight (that I have seen): April    

Species easily confused with: Vestalis anne; Vestalis gracilis gracilis; Vestalis amoena

Another Vestalis species I managed to spot was Vestais amethystina. However, unlike V. amoena where, if you found one, you found several, this species was in seriously low numbers. Maybe it was the wrong time of the year or they were just out of sight that day. I did manage to spot two males along a short and manicured trail that runs near the river at the research centre. Looking through bins I could clearly make out the 'V' nick in the appendages but my shots of the appendages are not so clear. I also found this species to be far more skittish and it took an age to get the shots I got... so I am happy for now. I can find this species in Kanchanburi down, so I should see him again someday -- and I really hope to spot the female too as she eluded me this time round.

The Male
The male is exactly the same as V. amoena and can only be separated by its appendages. However, I wonder if they like slightly different habitats?

The second male...

 The Appendages... you can just about make out the 'V' nick in the superior appendages (if you look carefully enough).

Sadly, I didn't get to see the female this time...

203. Vestalis amoena Selys, 1853

Number: 203

Family: Calopterygidae

Genus Vestalis

Species: Vestalis amoena

Common name(s):  Metallic Green Demoiselle

Synonym(s): N/A

Habitat: Mostly lowland forested small, sandy-bottomed streams

Province(s) sighted: To Mo Community Forest and streams below Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary (Narathiwat) 

Sightings (by me): Locally common

In flight (that I have seen): April    

Species easily confused with: Vestalis anne; Vestalis gracilis gracilis; Vestalis amethystina

I love Vestalis species and was overjoyed to spot two species known from the west/south of Thailand. The first one Vestalis amoena is most certainly the most common in Narathiwat. It seemed to prefer the trees at the edges of small, shallow and somewhat sandy-bottomed streams and is restricted to the very south of Thailand, whereas V. amethystina is found as high up as Kanchanaburi and I only saw it once at the large river that runs through Hala-Bala WS. Superficially, they look identical and the only way to separate the two species is by viewing their appendages. This is, of course, easier said than done. I did manage to get decent shots of the appendages. The appendages of V. amoena has a smooth bulbous end, whereas V. amethystina has a distinctive nick, otherwise they are impossible to separate. The males of both species were incredibly difficult to approach whereas the female of V. amoena was a little more cooperative.

The male
The male looks like other males in the genus... and totally awesome. How can anyone not love these big clumsy dragons that seem to plop from leaf to leaf in order to totally avoid being photographed but still manage to watch you!?!

Another male...

And the appendages...

The Female
The females were a little more cooperative

202. Tyriobapta torrida Kirby, 1889

Number: 202 

Family: Libellulidae

Genus: Tyriobapta

Species: Tyriobapta torrida

Common name(s): Tree Hugger

Synonym(s): N/A

Habitat: On a concrete post near a trickle of water and a small stream

Province(s) sighted: Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary and To Mo Community Forest (Narathiwat) 

Sightings (by me): 2 males 

In flight (that I have seen): April    

Species easily confused with: -- 

The first 'new' southern species I saw when I arrived at Hala-Bala WS was a bit of a surprise. Not because of the species, but because of the fact that it was happily 'hugging' a concrete post. In fact, once I managed to get decent photos I moved too much as it simply flew to the next post... we are, of course, talking about the awesome Tyriobapta torrida, commonly known as the 'Tree Hugger'. However, here I get the impression that they are as much at home on posts as they are on trees! He did eventually fly slightly further away and onto a tree when I attracted the attention of a few locals. Maybe it should be renamed as the Concrete Post Hugger, though I am not sure that this name is as nice haha. 

I was also able to catch the male with my fingers for a few quick snaps before he flew to -- you guessed it -- another concrete post!

I also saw a second male a stream lower down but this one was most certainly on a tree and was far more skittish. Sadly, I didn't get to see a female and I really wanted to as they are very different in appearance. Until the next time!

The male
He is easy to identify (if you can find it) due to its distinctive blue/clear wings.

The first male on 'his' concrete post

The second male at the stream

The first male now in hand...

201. Dysphaea dimidiata dimidiata Selys, 1853

Number: 201 

Family: Euphaeidae

Genus: Dysphaea

Species: Dysphaea dimidiata dimidiata

Common name(s): Black Velvetwing 

Synonym(s): Dysphaea limbata Selys, 1859; Dysphaea semilimbata Selys, 1859

Habitat: Large, exposed area of forested river with large boulders

Province(s) sighted: Nari River, Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary,  sandy stream lowlands (Narathiwat) 

Sightings (by me): Small number of skittish males 

In flight (that I have seen): April    

Species easily confused with: Dysphaea dimidiata walli; Dysphaea vanida; Euphaea masoni 

Another species that I hoped to see as it seems common in the south was Dysphaea dimidiata dimidiata. I did manage to spot a small number of males, but each one was as difficult to approach as the next. I first saw two males battling it out with a Gomphidia abbotti abbotti on a fallen tree overhanging the River Narwi. They were so skittish that I ended up literally having to swim to the other side of the river and creep up on them... you can imagine how hard that was. Eventually, one settled down and I managed to fire off a few decent shots of it in blazing sunshine -- though  did have to swim around quite a lot to get all the shots I wanted. So, another one in the bag, though this attempt did mess up my camera for a day. 

I also managed to spot a couple more males along the same stretch of river and I saw a solitary male at a shallow and sandy stream on the lower reaches.

Sadly, I didn't get to spot the female, but I am happy enough to get the male!

The male
It is similar to other species in the genus but has 'more black' on the wings.

200. Lyriothemis cleis Brauer, 1868

Number: 200 

Family: Libellulidae

Genus: Lyriothemis

Species: Lyriothemis cleis

Common name(s): Yellow-striped Chaser  

Synonym(s): Calothemis priapea Selys, 1878;

Lyriothemis braueri Kirby, 1889   

Habitat: A patch of foliage on the ground near a stream

Province(s) sighted: Sirinthorn Waterfall, Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary (Narathiwat) 

Sightings (by me): 1 male 

In flight (that I have seen): April    

Species easily confused with: --

Back in 2008, I was sat having a beer late afternoon and a male Diplacodes trivialis (I had no idea at the time what species it was) plopped right down in front of me. It then flew off and a few moments later, returned to the exact same place now with a small fly in its mouth. Watching it 'ball up' its meal I was transfixed and have never looked back since...

Well, after a full ten years, I have FINALLY got myself 200 photographed species from within Thailand. I have, of course, seen many more but actually getting decent quality photographs that can be used to ID species is another story. Also, by factoring in living in Khon Kaen, being a teacher (so limited budget and very limited time), and doing everything totally by myself (99% of trips have been solo missions, though my brother and a few others have made my trips better in the last few years) is rather impressive if I may say so myself. That's not to say that I haven't had any help... Noppadon Makbun, Oleg Kosterin to name but a few, as well as amazing help from the dragon hunters on Facebook's Dragonflies of Thailand. I could go on, but if I haven't mentioned you, please know that I appreciate the help... and may need it again somewhere down the line. Some of the species are yet to be identified (by science) but I am happy that they are at least separate species. I have a few more to add and a few that I can't add as I simply can't ID them or the angles are all wrong. 


Anyway, onto the 200th species... and a special one to say the least. All Lyrithemis species are rare and hard to locate, even if you know where they are supposed to be. And Lyriothemis cleis is no different. It is a rare species that I was simply incredibly lucky to spot near the waterfall at Hala-Bala WS. However, it didn't all go swimmingly... well, I went swimming to get good shots of Dysphaea dimidiata dimidiata and that seemed to be the killer blow! 

Anyway, as I was waiting around for the birders to turn up I saw a dull red dragon right in front of me. It was perched on a frond in the early morning sunshine which was poking through the tree canopy. I knew what it was straight away but one shot (that didn't come out) and my camera packed up. Aaaarrrggghhhh!!! Dead. Nothing. Now't. I knew the birder gang was about 100 metres away so I had to run to them grab my brother's camera, switch over the lens and then run back... a man had just walked past and it was gone... I was knackered, sweating and pissed off on several counts. No dragon and my camera was dead. I WASN'T giving up. I searched the whole area but it simply wasn't there. However, out came the sun and, with it, came that dull red dragon once more. Now, I was ready... plenty of good shots and it was in the bag. I was soooooooo elated until I walked back to the birder boys who were inspecting my camera... and then the realisation sank in: my dead camera. To cut a long story short, however, 24 hours later it started working again and it was game on again!

The male
The male has a dull red abdomen and also has distinctive yellowish stripes on the abdomen.

Next target: 250 species, of course!!!

199. Devadatta argyoides (Selys, 1859)

Number: 199  

Family: Devadattidae

Genus: Devadatta  

Species: Devadatta argyoides

Common name(s): Malayan Grisette  

Synonyms: Tetraneura argyoides Selys, 1859   

Habitat: A leafy (but boggy) road overflow area nr. HB HQ  

Province(s) sighted: Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary (Narathiwat) 

Sightings (by me): 1 male 2 females 

In flight (that I have seen): April    

Species easily confused with: --

As with many species, Devadatta argyoides was one of those that seems locally common along the west of Thailand southwards and has just simply evaded my camera. However, even when I did come across it, I almost missed it as it was at a tiny overflow area at the bottom of the road at HQ. There was a tiny, but inaccessible trickle running through and it would appear that a few species were hanging on in there until the rains arrived. I also saw a solitary male and a female Prodasineura collaris, a male Cratilla metallica and a solitary male Tyriobapta torrida hanging around the concrete posts close by! There were also several males of an Idionyx sp. flitting about at a million miles an hour as dusk approached (but were way to fast to catch or ID). Anyway, at around 6.30am, I noticed a female perched on a twig just above the rotting leaves. I almost ignored it, but my brain took over and I tried to photograph it... damn!!! The lens had fogged up! I had to wait almost 30 minutes for it to clear. By then, the damsel had gone! Amazingly, I found another slightly further away and it was fairly easy to get shots though the lighting was terrible. I returned to the same place the following afternoon and was fortunate enough to spot the male, who was also quite happy to let me snap away! So, not bad for a pile of leaves!

The male
The male is very dull in appearance but does have a few flecks of blue on its abdomen.

I was also fortunate enough to capture the male with my fingers and could use (slightly) better lighting...

The female

The female is very similar to the male but has a more robust abdomen. It is also fairly easy to approach, though by mid-morning they had disappeared.

198. Zygonyx ida Hagen, 1867

Number: 198  

Family: Libellulidae

Genus: Zygonyx  

Species: Zygonyx ida 

Common name(s): N/A  

Synonyms: Pseudomacromia luxuriosus Karsch, 1893    

Habitat: Lowland forested river   

Province(s) sighted: Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary, (Narathiwat) 

Sightings (by me): Rare (1 male) 

In flight (that I have seen): April    

Species easily confused with: Zygonyx iris malayana

A very rare species for Thailand that can be found at Hala-Bala didn't let me down. Zygonyx ida is known from the extreme south of Thailand and is clearly a species that is restricted by range (apparently locally common in Malaysia). However, even right on the border it almost eluded me -- as did a number of species I wanted to see. However, observing a number of fast-flying specimens (mostly Z. iris malayana) I was eventually drawn to a male that, well, just seemed smaller and did its own thing. Instead of flying high up it purposefully flew close to the surface of the river but patrolled constantly in the same way as its more common cousin. After a number of poor shots in flight I managed to get one that was good enough for an ID and it was indeed Z. ida!!! So, I settled down and reeled off a million shots until I managed to get a couple that were of a decent level (for my standards anyway). Amazingly, it landed right in front of me on a long stem of grass but flew off well before I could adjust the camera. Still, I am happy with the photos and hope to see it again one day. I am sure that is can be found elsewhere in Thailand but Hala-Bala seems like the best place right now.

The male

Very similar to Z. iris malayana but is noticeably smaller and has distinct white rings along the abdomen.

197. Prodasineura sp.

Number: 197  

Family: Platycnemididae

Genus: Prodasineura

Species: Prodasineura sp.

Common name(s): 

Synonyms: N/A    

Habitat: Forested sandy-bottomed stream  

Province(s) sighted: Lower reaches of Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary (Narathiwat)

Sightings (by me): Locally common 

In flight (that I have seen): April   

Species easily confused with: Prodasineura autumnalis, prodasineura verticalis

One species that I expected to see at Hala-Bala did not disappoint, although it took a little bit of searching to find it. Instead of being at the wildlife sanctuary, it was fairly abundant at a couple of the more open and sandy-bottomed streams nearer the base of Bala. Prodasineura sp. (whichever species it is), is very similar in every aspect to P. autumnulis and P. verticalis and the genus needs revision. Like most species in the genus, it likes to hang low down near the stream's edges and is difficult to photograph. These were the best I could get in blazing sunshine, as my neck was slowly turning into the appearance of a gingerbread biscuit.

The male

196. Lyriothemis biappendiculata (Selys, 1878)

Number: 196  

Family: Libellulidae

Genus: Lyriothemis

Species: Lyriothemis biappendiculata

Common name(s): N/A

Synonyms: Calothemis biappendiculata    

Habitat: Forested stream  

Province(s) sighted: Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary (Narathiwat)

Sightings (by me): 1 male 

In flight (that I have seen): April   
Species easily confused with: --

Halfway through the morning of the first full day, my camera packed up. I was gutted, though it was probably my fault (I had been swimming to get a shot) and I think a little water trickled down my wet sleeve and managed to get into the battery compartment (however, it seemed to work later--see full article on Hala-Bala which will be posted shortly). So, one morning was traipsing behind the birder group I was with. It was, of course, interesting as I learnt a little about some of the birds there. However, I was champing at the bit to get on with dragon hunting... way behind my brother, I heard him call out. I ran (well, rather hobbled as 'stiffleg syndrome' had set in from the previous day's walking). Anyway, as I reached him I could already see a solitary red dragonfly perched on a stick at the edge of the path. I knew straight away that it was Lyriothemis sp. and a new one at that for me. However, armed only with a 100-400mm lens and set up for birding getting a shot proved tricky. So, between me and my brother we fired off a few shots and this one was the best that came out. Turns out to be Lyriothemis biappendiculata, male -- a species that has been reported from a few places including Khao Yai and so I hope to see it again one day, especially the female as it looks so cool.

Anyway, thanks to my brother, Paul, for the use of his camera in my time of need and for even potentially taking the shot!!! Turned out quite nice, really.