Eyed Click and Amberwing

After years of never seeing Eyed Click Beetles, I've now, over the past two years, been spotting them regularly, both in the woods and in my yard. Maybe they're enjoying a population surge, or maybe I'm just a better observer. This one, however, appeared in the least likely of places: the millpond. More accurately, the millpond surface, where I noticed the beleaguered insect swimming half-heartedly in the water. I don't think it had any direction in mind, and from the commotion it was causing, I guessed that it would soon attract the attention of another observer: a hungry Bass. I suppose I could have followed my head and just watched, but I'm a softie, so I found a stick and nudged it to a floating log, where the beetle quickly climbed aboard, looking none the worse for the swim. In its haste to be free of the water, it startled a resting Eastern Amberwing dragonfly, which flew away. Once the Eyed Click dried off, I'm guessing it would fly off as well and seek the safety of the nearby woods.