Damselfly Mating Ritual

The series of 12 pictures, Damselfly mating 1 - 12, show the sequence of mating ritual of a pair of damselflies. After the initial grasping of the female damselfly at the neck, both hanged together with the female dangling below in mid air. The male then swung it upwards while the female curled its abdomen to make contact with the ovipositor. It made contact a couple of times before they firmly attached together and forming a heart shape pattern with the two bodies.

Once they have firmly attached themselves, they remained together for a few minutes with very small movements while the female remained quite motionless, in a frozen state of ecstasy.