Home»All Albums & Groups»Hong Kong & Macau - August, 2012»香港 - Ictinogomphus pertinax (Common Flangetail) Eats an Insect

~ Tong and I had finished photographing dragonflies and moved out onto a platform…an Ictinogomphus pertinax, Common Flangetail, which we'd been observing also flew away at that time, circling around the Nymphaea enclosure, returning to where it had been perched…although it was hot and we both were ready to move along, something about the insect's behavior sparked curiosity such that I told Tong that I wanted to take another look at it…sure enough, it was eating a flying insect which it apparently captured in midair…as it was perched in one place, we were able to document its lunch, with these fairly detailed shots…the EF 400mm f/2.8L IS II super telephoto lens showed its utility as a macro lens…this series shows the hapless insect prey gradually being consumed by the skillful Ictinogomphus pertinax hunter…as I tend to prefer action shots with environmental context to more sterile poses, these images are especially satisfying