Since the first bona fide dragonflies were filling the skies some 300 million years ago, it's definitely fair to say that odonates are among the ultimate survivors in the animal kingdom. So the fact that modern day hardies like the Meadowhawks can handle a taste of sub-freezing temperatures is almost unremarkable. Still, they're one of the few odes that can laugh at October frosts and make the transition to November; most other dragonflies have already called it a day and left the future to their eggs. Not so the members of the genus Sympetrum. This one, probably an Autumn Meadowhawk, was, after a chilly morning, now sunning itself on a warm observation deck. I don't know where it went to escape the frosts, but it somehow has a good refuge, and it'll be periodically on the wing for at least a couple more weeks. A fit survivor, to be sure.