Crop circle enthusiasts claim the succession of animal designs have been created in an attempt make people more aware of the threat of climate change and predict they could continue throughout the summer...Nicely done. The aliens even stomped veins into the dragonfly's wings."There has certainly been a lot of activity and this is the busiest year since 1999 at the moment," said Mr Alexander.
"People believe they will increase in frequency up to 2012 where there will be some kind of cataclysmic world event."
Pretty well done but it kind of looks like it was done by aliens who never really looked at a dragonfly up close...the main veins in an dragonfly's wing (as will all insects i know) run mainly from shoulder to tip along the front edge and thin out towards the back edge.
ReplyDeleteThe wings on this dragonfly look like they would be structurally compromised by the veins rather than reinforced.
Lots more (and better) photos of this one, including ground shots, at CropCircleConnector.com:
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This was first reported only two days ago, June 3, so they've done a really fast job of taking all the photos and making up the Web page.
It's basically highly stylized, as most crop formations picturing natural objects are, but it also has these odd, clumsily done naturalistic touches (like the veins in the wings, which, as linty points out, aren't accurately pictured).
Wish we could get an entomologist to look at this and tell us if any of its features suggest a particular type of dragonfly, or if it's just generic.
Apparently this is shaping up to be a very active crop circle season. Usually they don't start appearing until July.
I'm no entomologist but I do a lot of macrophotography and I have some knowledge of identification. I don't think it would be possible to identify as a specific type...most of the parts that are used to identify dragonflies are either not shown or are not correct.
ReplyDeleteYou usually would look at the length of the hing legs (missing), relative thickness of abdomen sections (appears to be one segment short of a full dragonfly, assuming that last linear segment is the excretory gland). It's missing the stigma (dark spot on the front edge of all dragonfly wings).
The way the eyes extend from the head and don't even come close to touching at the top is much more like a damselfly than a dragonfly.
What strikes me as odd is that the antennae (looks a bit like pincers due to perspective) are pretty accurate. I would have thought they'd be overlooked...
What kind of dragonfly? Clumsily done? Are you kidding me?? Can't you just enjoy something for what it is and not pick it apart? JFC...
ReplyDeleteSimmer down, Pete. I love these things. I'm not criticizing this one, just paying it the respect of observing it closely and wondering what its makers had in mind. It's striking to find this combination of stylization and naturalism (biologically perfect or otherwise) in a crop formation.
ReplyDeleteOne ought to be able to enjoy something and "pick it apart" at the same time. That's part of the enjoyment, at least for me.
well Pete...are we enjoying it as a supernatural or extraterrestrial phenomenon or are we enjoying it as a creative prank?
ReplyDeleteIf it's supposed to be done by aliens with advanced technology, then they should try harder, if it's done by a few people flattening the grass with boards then it's fantastic!
I think you guys are missing the point. They are not trying to depict an anatomically correct earth dragonfly; this is a portrayal of an alien dragonfly, done so that we can appreciate the variations in intergalactic life introduced by parallel evolution. Understanding the structure of this critter will help us understand the conditions on its world. What I'm wondering - is it drawn on a 1:1 scale ??!!
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