Hi! I'm hoping somebody else has seen these beauties... I was drinking coffee by the pond this morning, watching my fish eat breakfast, when a big purple dragonfly zoomed by. I didn't even know there was such a thing as a purple dragonfly! I took some pics and got online to try to ID it. Turns out its listed as a vulnerable species in its native Florida. So, what's it doing in Central Louisiana?!? There's more!... It flew around in circles at the perimeter of the pond, and then I saw it hitch up and mate with a yellow-brown dragonfly. I read on the internet that the female of this species is that color. I have green dragonflies, blue dragonflies, and now this purple one. I hope it stays. I'll try to link the pics I took this morning. Has anybody else outside of Florida seen this dragonfly? Here is a link that might be useful: Purple dragonfly pics

Some dragonflies can be found quite a distance from water, especially on cloudy days - it sounds as if you are already attracting them to your property. I'm not aware of any particular type of plant that they prefer. I get the most in the un-mown areas of my yard, I would think that it probably provides the most insects. And they do like to perch on the tall stems. I also get cruisers that cruise back and forth across the hill where the grass is mown. They tend to perch high in the trees. The eastern amberwings seem to prefer shorter vegetation that is a little sparser. Dragonflies are like so many other species in nature, there is a niche for them all! So I'm not sure there is any one plant that is good, I think a variety of vegatation is probably the best.

Yes, I know how the dragonflies and their larvae like to eat mosquitoes and am glad she laid her eggs. I figured with about 13 goldfish and the moving water, I wouldn't be likely to have mosquitoes in the pond. I have not seen them anymore now that we have our pond than before we we installed it. I'm generally careful about emptying my birdbath to keep that from becoming a breeding ground too. I really did enjoy watching her lay her eggs. That was a first for me to see this. She was flicking drops of water at least 12 inches across the surface. The whole time she was doing this, another dragonfly - assuming this was the male sat on one of my plants and watched. This one was bright blue - just beautiful! I have also seen a vibrant red dragonfly buzzing around too, but the blue one has claimed his territory.

Hmmm... this one has me pretty much stumped. Every time I think I have a clue, either none of the pics I Google come anywhere near close enough to a match or it doesn't live in your area. Am I gonna feel doofy when its ID is revealed? 8-Ã ICA, Sophie ^i^