Mystery early ode

For the past month or so, I've been involved in what is supposed to be an expedition into the Bell Cedar Swamp, a refuge for Atlantic White Cedar trees and the unique wildlife this imperiled wetland habitat supports. On our agenda is to try to find and document two state-endangered insects: the Hessel's Hairstreak butterfly and the Banded Boghaunter dragonfly. Both are partial to Atlantic White Cedars, and finding them would be a real coup for the Avalonia Land Conservancy, the local land trust that owns a good chunk of the Bell Cedar. Getting in on foot has been tricky, and our plan is to try a water assault by canoe and kayak. This afternoon, I was working on the garden when this guy showed up. To my not-well-trained eye, it sure looked like a boghaunter, and while I figured I couldn't possibly have gotten that lucky, I sent the image on to a real pro, ecologist Dave Wagner, the University of Connecticut researcher who's leading our Corps of Discovery. Dave let me down gently. Many others, himself included, have made a similar ID mistake, he wrote. What I'd spotted was instead a dragonfly known as Uhler's Sundragon. It's actually quite common, but, since I'd never seen one, I was happy to make Uhler's acquaintance.