These are surely not the best of my dragonfly pictures but maybe the most important and most difficult to shoot.
This is a golden-ringed dragonfly (
cordulegaster boltonii).
An endangered species in Germany (Red list V, IUCN NT*). As is the green-eyed hawker (Red list 3, IUCN VU*). (*If I transfer this right)
And maybe my pics can help to safe its habitat.
A friend of mine told me that he saw a dragonfly in the woods that he thought to be from the genus
cordulegaster but he didn‘t know which. He asked me to take pictures to determine it.
So I went into the „dark“ forest and found those patrolling along a small stream.
Bad light, narrow angel of view and those never sitting or hovering.
Until I saw this female (?) resting and took my chance.
With fill flash:
View attachment 199488
Natural light (1/200, ISO1600):
View attachment 199489
And here the "best" tries on a male in flight (1/500, ISO1600+):
View attachment 199490
View attachment 199491