“A name can’t begin to encompass the sum of all her parts. But that’s the magic of names, isn’t it? That the complex, contradictory individuals we are can be called up complete and whole in another mind through the simple sorcery of a name.”
– Charles de Lint, ‘Dreams Underfoot’
There are some names for things that would make you love the thing in question, even if it was awful, but when it turns out to be an amazing thing, the name makes it even better!!
This wee beastie is the Owly Sulphur or Libelloides coccajus. Or, at least, I think it is. There are quite a few species in the genus, and distinguishing them does seem to rely on them sitting still, allowing you to poke them, and answering a barrage of questions. Something which, from personal experience, they seem little inclined to do. But isn’t that just the best name for a thing?
As well as having an awesome name, they also look very cool. For want of a better way of describing them, they look like a giant (they’re about four centimetres long with a wingspan of five to six centimetres) cross between a dragonfly, a moth, and a lacewing. Their body is super furry, like a fuzzy, dark grey pipe cleaner. Their legs are yellow with ankle length black socks. They have two pairs of wings, splotched in pale, buttery sulphur yellow and black, but somehow and inexplicably, also lacy and transparent. When flying, the front pair of wings are held out from the body at right angles like those of a dragonfly wheareas the rear wings are held at an angle, like those of a moth. When you combine all of these things, the creature starts to look like it’s wearing a wing suit. Albeit a very snazzy one. Obviously, to make life more difficult for those who might have dastardly plans to photograph its magnificence, having landed, it flares its wings once and then folds them up to hide their glory. Happily, it can’t do anything to hide the glorious deely-boppers it’s using for antennae. Or the huge black eyes perched between them. All the better for sighting and catching its prey of other flying insects.
The species is supposedly (according to Wikipedia) rare, but we have seen them often in grassy areas of the garrigue in southern France.
These particular individuals were zooming about in an area of long grass bordering an olive orchard near Le Chabian. I tried very hard to capture a picture of them in flight, but they are way too quick for my reflexes (or my camera’s). I did get scratched to pieces by the grass though … which was fun 🙄.
absolutelynotnormal 