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 Equipment
You don't need to spend a lot of money on equipment to watch dragonflies and
damselflies. Many characteristics can be seen with the naked eye. As
you become more interested in the field of odonatology, you may want to to invest
in some equipment to make identification easier. Click on each item below for a
discussion of it.
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You will want to invest in a field guide. Stokes Beginners Guide
to Dragonflies and Damselflies by Nikula and Sones is a beginner's guide
to the most common odonates of the US and Canada. Dragonflies through
Binoculars, by Sidney Dunkle, is the first guide to all the Dragonflies
on North America; a companion guide to damselflies is in the works. It seems
that every day there are new regional guides being published and we provide
a partial list in our resources
section. This is a really great book that both beginner and expert
observers appreciate.
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Although many larger odes can be identified with the naked eye, you
may soon finding yourself wanting to see the detail on some of the smaller
species. Now is the time you will find a pair of binoculars very helpful.
Binoculars come in many sizes and price ranges so if you are investing in
a pair for the first time, you will want to do plenty of research before
buying. Birders sometimes prefer high-powered binoculars to bring
in images from some distance away. For bug watching, however, this
is often a hindrance unless the equipment is close-focusing. If you
have to back up 12 feet to focus, you are really not seeing much more detail
than you did naked eye! Most odonate and butterfly watchers prefer
binoculars that are 7 or 8 power and focus to 5-6 feet. Other considerations
include width and depth of field as well as a water-resistant body.
The websites in our equipment section
offer many good facts to help you with your purchase.
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An aerial bag or net is very useful for catching those odonates that
require in-hand examination. A bag with a 15-18 inch rim with a 3-4
ft. handle is usually used. An extension handle can be purchased later
for those hard to reach areas. Some say that the color of the bag
is important and that green or black are better so that the dragonflies
cannot easily see it. Some, like me, say it doesn't matter what color
the bag is. I personally use a white bag because it is easier to see
and remove the dragonfly.
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Another good piece of equipment to have is a hand-held 10x magnifying
loupe. It helps in seeing characteristics that are crucial for identification
but are to small to observe with the naked eye. If you don't have
a magnifying loupe, but do have a pair of binoculars, reversing them and
looking through them backwards can help in a pinch.
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It is very useful to bring a notepad and pencil for field notes.
I can't tell you how many times I've attempted to commit everything I've
observed to memory and forgotten all of it by the time I get home!
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You may find a printable checklist of odonates that can be found in
your geographic area by doing a web search. Bring this along with
you when observing so you can mark off the bugs as you see them.
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