Black Dragonfly on Fig Tree

macro photograph of a black dragonflyAnother dragonfly found in my yard.  They really seem to like using this fig tree as a resting place while they hunt.  Apparently dragonflies are territorial.  As I watched them I noticed they would frequently chase each other off and there would rarely be more than one on the tree at a time.

Pipe Vine Swallowtail

Searching for good photographic subjects on Big Walker Mountain, I happened upon a group of these large, blue and black butterflies.  My friend James Shelton, who is quite the amateur entomologist, tells me this butterfly is a Pipe Vine Swallowtail.