Dragonflies are usually associated with freshwater bodies – from small garden ponds to reservoirs and larger lakes, and from drains to canals and forest streams.
Many of Singapore’s parks have now been incorporated with water-bodies to provide habitats for aquatic fauna. Bishan Park has now a stream teeming with dragonflies, as shown in the video above by Tang Hung Bun. Filmed in early 2012, it was then newly created and the vegetation along the banks was regularly cleared. It was only after the vegetation regenerated back did the dragonflies appeared.
Even then only a few common species of dragonflies were present. The reddish male Common Scarlet (Crocothemis servilia) and the orangey male White-barred Duskhawk (Tholymis tillarga) can be seen fighting for territory along the stream (above). The females are less conspicuous because of their brownish colour. Instances of mating and oviposting can be seen.
Another video (above), filmed in the same year, shows the male White-barred Duskhawk fighting and ovipositing along the same stream. Most of this footage was taken at 120 fps and 240 fps. Only 3 seconds of it (01:12 to 01:15) was taken at normal speed (30 fps).
Tang Hung Bun
Singapore
February 2014