Photos

Alterativly titled (Nobody Home) this I think is the empty larval case of a Broad-bodied chaser and is what is left behind after the dragonfly larvae has crawled out of the water up a water side plant (in this case water Iris)in the middle of the night and locks its legs round the stem so it wont fall back into the water while emerging. They 1st of all pump body fluids into the Thorax to expand and break the outer skin. they then pull the head and upper body out. then after waiting a while for the legs to harden so it can use them,it reaches forward to grasp the old skin ,it can then pull the tail out of the hind quarters.with the body now clear of the old body it pumps the wings up again with body fluids and waits again for them to harden before making a maiden flight usually away from the water to start feeding. this takes 1 -2 hours, and during this time its is liable to be eaten by any sharp eyed bird or beastie with a liking for a tasty meal of non crunchy meal fo dragonfly.
IF YOU FIND ONE EMERGING PLEASE DO NOT TOUCH OR HANDLE BECAUSE AT THIS STAGE ANY DAMAGE WILL LEAD TO DEATH OF THE BEASTIE.
Adjustments.
treated both the same,
saturation +12 Contrast +3
sharpen edges aand fade back to 75%
use level tool to level back ground bank
crop both pictures and paste onto a 800 X 800px canvas @72 dpi.