Five-striped Leaftail (Phyllogomphoides albrighti)

Five-striped Leaftail
Phyllogomphoides albrighti

The Five-striped Leaftail (Phyllogomphoides albrighti) is a fairly large, showy clubtail of Texas. The first shots here are digital captures in Austin, Travis Co., Texas in June, 2003 and were shot with a Canon EOS 10D and EF 70-200 mm F2.8 L IS lens with a 2X extender and 550 EX flash. The Four-striped Leaftail (P. stigmatus) is very similar in appearance and caution is needed in making the identification. On the Five-striped Leaftail note the pattern of the stripes on the thorax forming two distinct "U" shapes caused by the posterior two pairs of stripes being connected at the bottom. I have created a page about the field characters of these two similar species. If you are interested, click here.

The male Five-striped Leaftail shown here was at Austin, Travis Co., Texas, in May, 2007. This image was taken with a Canon EOS 1D Mark II and EF 300mm F/4 L IS lens and 2X extender and 580 flash.
The teneral male Five-striped Leaftail shown here was near Mission, Hidalgo Co., Texas, in May, 2008. This shot was taken with a Canon EOS 1D Mark III and EF 300mm F/4 L IS lens and 2X extender.
The next 3 shots show different views of the same male Five-striped Leaftail. It was photographed at the same time and place as well as the same equipment as the shot just preceding.


The female Five-striped Leaftail shown here seemed to have flanges on segment 8 that were larger than normal for a female. This image was taken along the Rio Grande in Hidalgo Co., Texas, in June, 2008, with a Canon EOS 1D Mark III and EF 300mm F/4 L IS lens and 2X extender.
The female Five-striped Leaftail shown here was along the Rio Grande in Hidalgo Co., Texas, in April, 2009. These shots backed up the early known date for this species in Texas by 3 weeks.

The next 4 images of Five-striped Leaftails were all taken in May, 2009, along the Rio Grande in Hidalgo Co., Texas, with a Canon EOS 1D Mark III and EF 300mm F/4 L IS lens and 2X extender and 580 flash. The shot at right shows a male, followed by 2 shots of a female, then the 4th shot shows another male.



The male Five-striped Leaftail shown here was in Gonzales Co., Texas, in August, 2009. This image was taken with a Canon EOS 1D Mark III and an EF 300mm F/4 L IS lens and 2X extender and 580 flash.
The next 2 shots of a male (1st) and female (next) Five-striped Leaftail, were taken in Austin, Travis Co., Texas, in August, 2009 with a Canon EOS 1D Mark III and an EF 300mm F/4 L IS lens and 2X extender and 580 flash.

The male Five-striped Leaftail in the next two shots was along the bank of the Rio Grande in Hidalgo Co., Texas, in May, 2010. In the first image the dragon is feeding upon some species of plant hopper. These 2 shots were taken with a Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and an EF 300mm F/4 L IS lens and 2X extender and 580 flash.

The next 3 images of Five-striped Leaftail males were taken in Austin, Travis Co., Texas, in July, 2010, with a Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and an EF 300mm F/4 L IS lens and 2X extender and 580 flash.


The image shown here was taken in Luling, Caldwell Co., Texas, in July, 2010, with a Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and an EF 300mm F/4 L IS lens and 2X extender and 580 flash.
The female Five-striped Leaftail on the right was in Webberville, Travis Co., Texas, in July, 2008.
The pair of Five-striped Leaftails in copula was in Austin, Travis Co., Texas, in August, 2010.
The male Five-striped Leaftail on the right was in Austin, Travis Co., Texas, in June, 2011.
The next three shots of a male Five-striped Leaftail were taken in Gonzales Co., Texas in August, 2011, with a Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and a Sigma 50-500mm lens and Canon 580 flash.


Five-striped Leaftail Phyllogomphoides albrighti male Hornsby Bend, Austin, Travis Co., Texas 30 May 2013
Five-striped Leaftail Phyllogomphoides albrighti female Hornsby Bend, Austin, Travis Co., Texas 1 July 2013
Five-striped Leaftail Phyllogomphoides albrighti male Hornsby Bend, Austin, Travis Co., Texas 1 July 2013
Five-striped Leaftail Phyllogomphoides albrighti male Independence Park, Gonzales, Gonzales Co., Texas 2 August 2013
Five-striped Leaftail Phyllogomphoides albrighti female Independence Park, Gonzales, Gonzales Co., Texas 2 August 2013
Five-striped Leaftail Phyllogomphoides albrighti male San Marcos River 3 miles west of Luling, Caldwell Co., Texas 2 August 2013