Messy eater

[centuryplant]

I love watching bluets glean insects from plants. They hover around, inspecting the stems with an air of polite interest, often flying sideways while rotating so they always face the target. Now and then one will stab forward in the air -- like one of those poles used to spear trash in parks -- and grab what it thinks is a bug, but may actually just be just a piece of debris, or the scar left behind by a fallen leaf. Then they move on, unembarrassed. When they do get something to eat, it's often a tiny fly you can barely see, but this Tule Bluet managed to pick up a more substantial meal.

FOOP. Eleven seconds later, the wings have fallen off, the body is half eaten, and moth shrapnel is everywhere.

Comments

[kore]

Oh, they're called bluets! I had no idea.

WOW, fast eater. Also love "moth shrapnel."

[onyxlynx]

[obIrrelevant: Oooh, Sharks fan! /obIrrelevant]

Those are beautiful colors, though. Also had no idea they were called bluets; "bluette" seems in some places to be French for blueberry.

[holyschist]

Gorgeous shot, and awesome action moment! I love it when photographers catch odes doing things, and they are awfully efficient eaters.