.14 University of Michigan 



scurely colored dragonfly fly from the sand or near it to rest 

 on the leaf of a bush growing on the very steep creek bank. 

 In attempting to ascend the bank to come within striking dis- 

 tance, I frightened it, and it flew up through the forest, being 

 lost sight of at once. I continued my way up the quebrada 

 but thoughts of the peculiar and unidentified dragonfly I had 

 seen remained with me. Twenty minutes or half an hour 

 later I retraced my steps. I approached the little sand bar in 

 the pool very slowly and scrutinized it carefully for a resting 

 dragonfly, but detected nothing. At the next step, however, 

 it again raised, as nearly as I could tell, from the sand, and 

 alighted as before, on the horizontal leaf of a bush, fortunate- 

 ly this time at a lower elevation. A moment later it was in 

 my net with a mass of leaves and twigs which I mowed from 

 the bush in my anxiety to make the capture of the dragonfly 

 certain. The next day on the Quebrada Sabaleticus I saw two 

 dragonflies with identical habits, both, rising from little sand 

 banks which I had previously inspected and alighting on 

 horizontal leaves of trees or bushes. In one case I had a good 

 view of the insect on the leaf, but both flew before I could get 

 within striking distance. I am fairly certain both were 

 Ischnogomphus jessel. No others w^ere seen by us. If its 

 habits, as far as we saw them, are typical, this species must 

 be carefully searched for if the collector is to find it. In the 

 prevalent patchy sunlight on the sand bars they must be very 

 well concealed indeed. One who has collected fairly conspic- 

 uous gomphines in a similar habitat knows how well ''marked 

 down" an individual must be, if it is to be readily detected. 

 The flight of hchnogomplius jessei moreover is swift and 

 direct, and it alights without any pause or fluttering. Add to 

 this its apparent timidity and the difficulty of its capture is 

 ■evident. 



