Things are really moving now

At Ditchford this lunchtime three new species were emerging and taking their first flights - adult activity is now about 1 week late which is an improvement on this time last week. The next species due to emerge is the Banded Demoiselle, which should be very soon so keep an eye around the Nene and other rivers.

50+ emerging Blue-tailed Damselflies, 10+ emerging Common Blue Damselflies, 5+ emerging Azure Damselflies, 5+ emerging Red-eyed Damselflies and 6 emerging Hairy Dragonflies.

Female Hairy Dragonfly



Female Blue-tailed Damselfly

Male Blue-tailed Damselfly

Male Common Blue Damselfly

Male Azure Damselfly

Two more species appear

Well, it is still slow going out there and the recent weather hasn't helped. At Ditchford I have now found Hairy Dragonflies and Blue-tailed Damselflies (sorry no photos).

Large Red Damselfly emerging

Another early morning start enabled me to capture this sequence of shots of a Large Red Damselfly emerging. The whole sequence took about 2 hours. There were about 10 others emerging and a few exuviae that may have been from yesterday.

At last, the season starts

The cold weather at the end of March and into early April has had a definate effect on emergence this year. Large Red Damselflies are normally seen from around 22 April and certainly by the beginning of May. This year though, nothing! I took an early morning trip out in the hope that the recent spell of bright sunny weather had stimulated emergence and only found one Large Red Damselfly. The coming Bank Holiday looks good too, so we may see a major catch-up.

Common Darters still around

Terry Wood reports a Common Darter in Polebrook on 18 Nov. The latest date for the County is 29 Nov, so still a week and a bit to go. I've not seen any this month, so am now keen to go out when the sun shines and have a look. This photo is the male seen by Terry.

Fermyn Woods Country Park

We took a walk through Fermyn Woods as  was lovely sunny afternoon. Stopping at the Big Pit pond, we watched several Southern Hawkers at territory and at least 3 females ovipositing. In total there were around 10 Southern Hawkers. Also, 1 Migrant Hawker, several Ruddy and Common Darters. It's always good to see Ruddy Darters into October as their season is often over by now.

Southern Hawker

At last, I've managed a half-decent shot of a Southern Hawker in-flight! Also, still a few Ruddy Darters, Common Darters and Migrant Hawkers around.

End of September Activity

Well, summer is over and the autumn nights are drawing in. Dragonflies are still active though and will be for over 1 month. At Finedon this lunchtime, several Common Darters were ovipositing alongside a few Ruddy Darters. A single female Migrant Hawker egg laying in the reeds and a male Southern Hawker patrolling territory (I still haven't managed a decent in-flight shot of this species). This obliging male Common Darter hovered just in front of me allowing a series of in-flight shots.

White-legged Damselflies still around

I visited the River Ise this windy luchtime. There was nothing flying, apart from 2 White-legged Damselflies flitting around among the reeds. This is a very late date for this species, although the Ise does regularly see White-legs into September.

Loads of Migrant Hawkers about

I am seeing lots of Migrant Hawkers around, especially far from water. Where ever I drive, I seem to see them flying around the roads. At Ditchford on Friday, there were around 100 adults including territorial males, ovipositing females and mating pairs. There was a lot of fighting over territories and great excitement when a female appeared. The sheer numbers made in-flight photography very exciting, and I got a good number of shots. Here are some of my favourites. Also seen, many Common Darters, a few Brown Hawkers, Common Blue Damselflies, one Ruddy Darter and a couple of Banded Demoiselles.

Migrant Hawkers at Ditchford

Ditchford was buzzing with Migrant Hawkers this lunchtime, although the frequent clouds obliterating the sun reduced the photo opportunities. Anyway, I managed to get a couple of decent in-flight shots. Many pairs were mating, but frustratingly out of reach.

A surprise visitor put in an appearance -  a female Southern Hawker! This species does not breed at Ditchford as the water is too deep, although adults occassionally appear as they are great wanderers. Also seen were several Common Blue Damselflies, Brown Hawkers (including an ovipositing female), Blue-tailed Damselflies and many Common Darters.

Small Red-eyed Damselflies

Male Small Red-eyed Damselfly

Tandem pair

Ovipositing

I made a call at Higham Ferrers pits this afternoon with temperatures hovering between 29-30 degrees C - a real scortcher! There was plenty of activity from the Small Red-eyes, but not much else. Although Dragonflies like the sun, they can overheat and temperatures this high can reduce activity.

I saw a total of 70+ Small Red-eyes with around 20 pairs ovipositing into the hornwort. They were all a fair way out so I had to wade through the duck weed with my camera perched on its monopod. This was quite scary as one mis-foot and down I would have gone with my camera (probably uninsured as this would be considered a hazardous adventure). Well worth it though!

Migrant Hawkers & Common Darters

Female Migrant Hawker

















Male Migrant Hawker

Common Darter



Common Darter

The walk to the pond at Finedon is along a disused railway line, and is lined with trees and hedges with several open areas that trap sunlight and warmth. Within these areas I watched as around 40 Migrant Hawkers buzzed hunting for food. Luckily a male and a female landed in a suitable position for a few shots. There were also plenty of immature Common Darters flitting around and resting on branches and twigs. At the pond, Ruddy Darters, Emerald Damselflies and Brown Hawkers were ovipositing in good numbers. 

Migrant Hawkers at last

Mark Piper reports the first Migrant Hawker at Brampton Wood on 25 July, north of Desborough. Looks like the Northants set is complete for 2012 baring any unusual migrants in the remainder of the flying season.