All in all it has been an amazing time at Cat Tien National Park again, bringing in plenty of new discoveries and showing what a treasure trove Vietnam really is, when it comes to Odonata. I saw about 270 in 2014 and there is definitely no end in sight, but most of my time is spent in the north. So these trips to the south are a rare treat and bring in loads of new experiences. For one, there is no real quiet season. Although in the north even now you can find dragons or damsels (just last week, on the 26th I had a female
Megalestes micans in Sa Pa (yes, even at that height they hang on in the cold) that does not compare to the exciting hustle and bustle of the south. Here is a few more damsel pictures to wrap up adventures there.
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| Male of Argiocnemis rubescens, very common in November |
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| And the immature female of Argiocnemis rubescens |
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| Another species that was surprisingly common this time round was Onychargia atrocyana, here a male |
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| But what was really a surprise was Rhinagrion hainanense. This is a male, although I also saw a female. Very similar R. yokoii has recently been shown to be a junior synonym of this species. |
Hi Tom! My name is Brian and I am an Odonate enthusiast living in Taiwan. I want to travel to Vietnam in a few weeks to go to Cat Tien and I was wondering if you had any advice as far as areas of the park to visit or where to stay, tips for first-timers.
ReplyDeleteIt will be my first time in Vietnam...all the great stuff on your blog has inspired this as a choice destination for me!! Thanks for any information! Also, I'm curious what kind of photo setup you usually use. Your work is awesome.
Thanks a lot!
Brian, so sorry, I have not been active for a while because of wrapping up a field guide on dragonflies in Brazil. Maybe you already went to Cat Tien? If not, you can reach me on kompier in tokyo (at) yahoo . com (remove spaces, all one word).
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