Northamptonshire Dragonflies

Mid November Activity

2011-11-19T15:53:00.003Z

Walking over a bridge over the River Ise yesterday, I disturbed a pair of Common Darter in cop. This is a good late date to find a mating pair, so I set off to Ditchford this afternoon with the sun nice and bright and temps hivering around the 13 degrees C mark. At this time of year, any remaining Darters hunt our reflective surfaces to bask on and collect as much sun energy as possible. A common site is to see them on tree stumps and fence posts. Well, I managed to find three this way in amongst a lot flies also absorbing the sun's warmth. If this warm weather continues we may even see some Darters into December. The photos show a male and female (top).

Recent Ovipositing Action

2011-09-24T17:57:00.005+01:00

The Common Darters and Migrant Hawkers are busy ovipositing at the moment, and when a group of Darters get together it is quite mad! Here are pictures of a Migrant Hawker and a close-up shouing the ovipositor inserted into the plant stem. Capturing tandem Darters ovipositing is very hard as they move quite jerkily and quickly, so the images here are the result of over 500 shots.

Migrant Hawkers Ovipositing

2011-09-10T16:23:00.004+01:00

Another trip to Finedon Pocket Park found this female Migrant Hawker ovipositing into dead plant stems some 1.5m from the pond margin. This is a protective measure to keep the eggs safe until they hatch in the spring, when water levels have risen.

Migrant Hawker Frenzy

2011-09-01T19:21:00.005+01:00

As we enter late summer, early atumun, Migrant Hawkers start to appear in large numbers. At Ditchford this lunchtime I saw about 30 including ovipositing females and mating pairs. I managed to capture these males hovering searching for females. Also seen were a few Common Blue Damselflies, a single Red-eyed Damselfly, lots of Common Darter and a few Brown Hawker.

More Common Darters

2011-08-29T10:33:00.003+01:00

Finedon packet park is becoming on of my favourite places as I have recorded 13 species there so far, including a couple of Migrant Hawkers. There were many Common & Ruddy Darter buzzing around and I managed to captures these few males in-flight.

Small Red-eyed Damselflies, at last

2011-08-22T20:37:00.002+01:00

Last year, Small Red-eyed Damselflies were recorded from the end of June, so I have been checking a few of their usual sites since that time this year. I have not seen them until today, which is around their usual time. I wonder if the adults seen in June last year were a new influx from the continent, or the poor June/July weather this year delayed their emergence? Anyway, at Highham Ferrers Pocket Park and Gravel Pits, several hundred were about, mainly some distance from the bank making photography difficult. Several pairs were ovipositing and in tandem, like this one above

Common Darters

2011-08-01T20:20:00.003+01:00

While it is still early in their season, there are plenty of Common Darters about. I saw this lot at Finedon Pocket Park, where there were also a pair ovipositing. Also there, Ruddy Darter, Azure, Blue-tailed and Emerald Damselflies and Brown Hawker.

Emperors at old Sulehay

2011-07-31T18:26:00.002+01:00

Saturday pm was perfect dragonfly weather, so I visted Old Sulehay to find Emerald Damselflies as they are missing from this area, and a colony would fill a gap in the Northants atlas. Alas, no Emeralds, but there were 12 Emperors, including ovipositing females, Black-tailed Skimmer, Southern Hawker, Common Darter, Azure, Common Blue and Blue-tailed Damselflies. I managed a couple of decent in flight shots of the Emperors.

At last - an Emperor in flight

2011-07-11T20:38:00.003+01:00

I managed to catch thios male Emperor in flight at Wilson's Pits this lunchtime. In total, Igot about 6 decent pictures. Fou males were present and one ovipositing female. Also present, a couple of Black-tailed Skimmer, loads of Common Blue Damselflies and Red-eyed Damselflies.

On the River Nene at Waddenhoe

2011-07-09T20:20:00.002+01:00

I popped down to Waddenhoe this afternoon to see how the Scarce Chasers were doing. While the weather was sunny about 12 adults appeared including 3 mating pairs. Good numbers considering the time in their season. I was surprised by the lack of Banded Demoiselle - I only saw about 10 in total, including this beautiful female (photo above). Normally, several hundred would be flitting about the water. Emperors, Brown Hawker, Red-eyed Damselflies, Blue-tailed and Common Blues were also present, again in reduced numbers.

Emperors at Finedon Pocket Park

2011-07-05T20:31:00.003+01:00

Doug Goddard sent me a few records from a pond at Finedon Pocket Park, which actually is very close to where I work, so I have been visiting weekly over the last couple of weeks. Today, in the sunshine I saw two male Emperors fighting over territory and this ovipositing female. A single, old male Four-spotted Chaser occassionally joined in and many Azures oviposited in the algae. In the reeds I found a good number of Southern Hawker exuviae and I disturbed 5 recently emerged Ruddy Darter. Unfortunaltely, they flew into the trees before I could get a decent shot.

Irthlingborough Pits Bioblitz

2011-07-03T17:50:00.003+01:00

Have just returned from recording dragonflies at the Wildlife Trusts Bioblitz at Irchester Pits. In the first ditch we found a number of emerging Common Darter (the first records thisn year), along with Four-spotted Chaser and Black-tailed Skimmer larvae. Around the gravel pits, we recorded Brown Hawker, Emperor, (including many of both hawking amoung the grasses), Black-tailed Skimmer, Blue-tailed, Red-eyed, Common Blue and Azure Damselflies and Banded Demoiselle on the river.

End of June Update

2011-06-26T17:15:00.004+01:00

The end of June brings with it hot weather, and at last a chance to get to see some dragons. I visited Yardley Chase and saw: Downy Emerald, Emperor, Four-spotted Chaser, Large Red, Azure and Blue-tailed Damselflies and my first Emerald Damselflies. Several Southern Hawker were emerging too (Doug Goddard spotted the first on 9 May). I managed to capture shots of Downy and Four-spots in-flight.

Chris Emary has reported seeing the first Migrant Hawker at Salcey Forest.

BDS Field Trip - Variable Damselfly Hunting

2011-06-11T17:53:00.005+01:00

For this year's BDS Field Trip, we went hunting for Variable Damselfly. This is a species that has sporadic records, mostly in the north of the County, so we set off to see if we could find any colonies in the Peterborough area. Our first stop was at Maxey Gravel Pits where Variables were recorded here in 2007 although I haven't heard of any records since then. About 20 Variable Damselflies were flitting about the lilly pads on a large floating mass of lillies. A single pair in tandem landed on the pads and began to oviposit, frustratingly out of reach of my camera. In the air above, Emperor, Hairy and many Four-spotted Chaser buzzed around as the sun burts through the clouds. Also see were Common Blue, Blue-tail, Azure Damselfly, an ovipoiting pair of Large Reds and many Red-eyes. Maxey pits are very unspectacular and could be any other gravel pit complex, so why does it host Variables Damselfies while others do not? As we pondered this enigma, we took a detour along Maxey Cut, walking for many km along this linear water course. Here we saw more Variables, Azures, Emperors, Four-spotted Chaser, hundreds of Common Blues & Blue-tails and several Banded Demoiselle - fewer than expected considering the habitat. A great day out added 3 new 1km squares for Variable Damselfy and a total of 9 species seen.

Scarce Chaser at Waddenhoe

2011-06-05T15:57:00.004+01:00

Waddenhoe is probably my favourite site for Scare Chaser as it affords great views of territorial males along the Nene from the Mill to the footbridge. Despite windy conditions, good numbers of males were present, along with Hairy Dragonfly, Red-eyed Damselflies and fewer than expected numbers of Banded Demoiselle. I also managed to capture a male Banded Demoiselle coming intot land on his territorial perch.

Brown Hawker Emerging

2011-06-01T18:43:00.002+01:00

Emerging Brown Hawker

Male Red-eyed Damselfly

Found this emerging Brown Hawker this lunchtime, some two weks earlier than normal. The good (and long forgotten) hot weather in April is still having an impact. Also seen: Emperor, Hairy Dragonfly, Red-eyed Damselfly, Common Blue, hundreds of Blue-tails, and For-spotted Chaser.

Recent Sightings

2011-05-31T18:07:00.002+01:00

Doug Goddard reports Black-tailed Skimmer at Summer Leys. He also met someone photographing dragonflies there who had a picture of a Scarce Chaser taken near the feeding station. This is a great sighting, so if anyone is planning on going to the Leys, please keep an eye out on the River and surroundings for any more.

Four-sotted Chasers in flight

2011-05-28T18:01:00.003+01:00

I've been putting the AF modes on my 7D to the test and have captured these in flight shots of some male Four-spotted Chasers. The males fly very quickly but will hover around their territory, and if you watch what they do and pre-focus, you can get some good shots.

Downy Emerald first flight "The Movie"

2011-05-21T18:21:00.004+01:00

My new Canon 7D has a movie mode and I have been keen to capture a dragonfly's first flight with it. At Yardley Chase this afternoon, I found this recent emergent and filmed it as it warmed its wings and took its maiden flight. If you listen carefully you can here my exclamation at the end!

Recent Sightings from the west

2011-05-19T20:45:00.003+01:00

Chris Emary reports the year's first White-legged Damselfies and Beautiful Demoiselles on the River Tove at Towcester. Also seen: Banded Demoiselle, Azure Damselfly, Red-eyed Damselflu and Large Red Damselfly.

Activity at Billing Gravel Pits

2011-05-12T19:07:00.000+01:00

Jim Dunkley reports seeing Hairy Dragonlfies emerging and mating at Billing Gravel Pits along with Banded demoiselle emerging on the Nene (see Jim's pictures above).

Possible Vagrant Emperor at Brackmills Industrial Estate

2011-05-10T19:36:00.003+01:00

Darryl visited Brackmills Estate on 9 May and described an unusual hawker dragonfly that did not show the usual jizz of a Hairy Dragonfly. Darryl says "it was predominantly brown, and longer and thinner than a typical Hairy. It had brownish wings, which resembled a dragonfly's wings when they have aged over a long period of time, i.e. towards the end of its life. The behaviour was not typical of a Hairy as it was hawking at least two reed lengths above the water and over the trees, the male Hairys were patrolling low down amongst the reeds at the time." Darryl did not see the characteristic cyan-blue saddle so there is no positive ID. I have not accepted it as a record and am posting it here for others to keep an eye out especially as there has been a confirmed sighting in neighbouring Leicestershire (does this mean it must have flown through Northants to get there and that we can clim a record by default?). Please keep an eye out and look for the cyan-blue saddle on the first abdominal segments.

Emperor at Bucknell Woods, Towcester

2011-05-10T19:31:00.002+01:00

Doug Goddard (Northants butterfly recorder) has seen this first Emperor of the year at Bucknell Woods near Towcester. This species normally emerges at the end of May/early June so is keeping up this year's schedule of 10-14 day advance on emergence.

Scarce Chasers emerging on the Nene

2011-05-07T18:01:00.004+01:00

At last, some rain (although not much yet)! I took a walk along the Nene at Waddenhoe Mill and Lilford in search of Scarce Chaser this afternoon after the rain had cleared. At Waddenhoe I found 5 exuvia and one emergent female with crinkly wings. Also found exuviae of Banded Demoiselle of which there where ~100 adults present and 2 Hairy Dragonfly exuviae. I am always surprised to find Hairy exuvia on the Nene as this species prefers static water sites with plenty of dead plant material. At Lilford, I hoovered up 15 exuvia and found two emeregent adults. The photo above shows a male with right-hand wings stick together. The cool, rainy weather this morning is probably the cause.

Wicksteed Park

2011-05-04T20:27:00.002+01:00

Darryl reports seeing the following at the Wicksteed Park Nature Trail fishing lake: Hairy Dragonfly, Azure Damselfly, Common Blue Damselfly and Blue-tailed Damselfly. This is a great dragonfly site and a pleasent walk away from the crowds at Wicksteeds.

Large Reds mating

2011-05-04T20:24:00.004+01:00

I visited the River Ise near Harrowden this lunchtime. There were many Large Reds around including 4 pairs in tandem and mating. In total around 15 adults were seen. I stalked this pair until they landed in a convenient place for a photo.

Downy Emeralds emerging two weeks early

2011-05-01T12:59:00.003+01:00

Large Red

Four-spotted Chaser

Emerging Downy Emerald

I visited Yardley Chase today in the hope of catching some emerging Four-spots or Hairys, and instead found 2 exuviae of Downy Emerald and one adult emerging. Due to the early time I visited (0830hrs), the 2 exuviae must have been from yesterday or earlier, which means that the recorded species total for April is 10 species, a new County Record (2007 = 8 species). This is a good two weeks early for the Downy and a sign of how special this spring has been for our dragonflies. I only hope the year doesn't progress like 2007, with a very wet summer. The Downy larva had climbed the trunk of a small tree overhanging the water. This is classic behaviour for this species, but one that I have not seen before. I now understand why the larva's legs are so long - to grasp around the tree trunk. The emerging adult was in the shade with a bright sunlit background, so I had to use fill-in flash - my new Canon 7D has a wireless flash function that really helped get the shots.

Also seen: Large Red, Blue-tailed, Four-spotted Chaser, Hairy Dragonfly.

A visit to Wilsons Pits during the Royal Wedding

2011-04-29T16:19:00.002+01:00

I was so disappointed that the weather this morning wasn't up to much as I had big plans to go spotting instead of watching the Royal Wedding. By lunchtime, though, the sun was poking through so I stepped out to nearby Wilsons pits for an hour or so. Here, I saw 3 Hairy Dragonfly, 100+ Azure Damselflies, 30+ Red-eyed Damselflies, 3 Blue-tailed Damselflies and 5 Common Blue Damselflies.

Broad-bodied Chaser

2011-04-29T08:59:00.002+01:00

Doug Goddard reports seeing this Broad-bodied Chaser at Yardley Chase. This is then a record for Northants with 9 species recorded before the end of April. I suspect there may be quite a gap until the next species emerges which is usually Downy Emerald.

Red-eyed Damselfly at Southfields Farm Marsh

2011-04-27T19:29:00.002+01:00

I took a walk up to Southfields Farm Marsh this lunchtime, without the camera. It was sunny but with a cool breeze. I managed to see a Large Red and Banded Demoiselle on the River Ise and at the marsh, Azure Damselflies, Large Red, Blue-tailed and a single teneral Red-eyed Damselfly. This makes our total 8 species before the end of April, which is the same as the record year of 2007. It is possible that Broad-bodied Chaser may also be out somewhere, so keep those eyes peeled around small shallow ponds (especially garden ponds).

Azure Damselflies at Finedon

2011-04-26T08:27:00.002+01:00

Doug Goddard reports seing Azure Damselflies and Large Red Damselflies at Finedon Country Park.

Banded Demoiselle on the Nene

2011-04-25T10:33:00.003+01:00

On Easter Sunday, I took a walk around the main sailing lake at Thrapston and found 7 Banded Demoiselle, 1 Hairy and 1 Common Blue Damselfly.

Large Reds abd Blue-tails at Salcey Forest

2011-04-23T21:13:00.002+01:00

Chris Emary reports both mating pairs of Large Reds and Blue-tailed Damselflies at Salcey Forest.

Mass Emergence of Hairy Dragonfly

2011-04-22T15:03:00.006+01:00

Graham Bentley texted me tis morning about a mass emergence of Hairy Dragonfly at Ditchford. I dashed off immediately an met Graham there filming an adult. We counted 20+ adults and watched several take their maiden flight into the trees. While hunting for more, we saw 20-30 Common Blue Damselflies emerging and flying into the grasses.

While walking the Mother-in-Law's dog around Thrapston Lakes, I caught a fleeting glimpse of a recently emerged Banded Demoiselle taking its maiden flight.

More Dragonflies appear

2011-04-22T08:42:00.003+01:00

With the hot weather still with us (and set to continue for a while), the Spring emerging dragonflies are starting to appear. In a normal year, only the Large Red Damselfly will have emerged so far. This year though, I have received the following extra records:

Graham Bentley reports a Four-Spotted Chaser at Fermyn Wodds Country Park on 21 April (see photo above).

Darryl Sutcliffe found a recently emergered Hairy Dragonfly at Stanwick Lakes on the same day.

The last good April ws in 2007, when we saw 8 species on the wing by the end of the month. With three so far, we are on track to meet this. Mind you, the remainder of 2007 was poor with severe floods over many parts of the UK, so I hope this spell of good weather doesn't signal the same event this year.

First Large Red Damselfly of the year

2011-04-17T18:09:00.003+01:00

David Warner reports seeing the first Large Red Damselfly of the year at Storton's Pits. This is about a week earlier than normal, but not surprising considering the good weather recently.

Common Darters still around

2010-11-06T16:30:00.003Z

November 6th, 11 degrees and I still manged to find three Common Darters at Ditchford this afternoon. It was a lovely autumnal day with good low sunlight warming up the trees and logs around the lake. These males were perched soaking up the sun and one even caught a fly to eat. The latest date for Darters in Northants is 29th November, so there are still a few weeks to go and these males still look in good condition, so as long as there is a food source they may survive a little longer.

Southern Hawkers and Common Darters at Fermyn Woods

2010-10-17T17:18:00.002+01:00

We took a walk around Fermyn Woods CP on a beautiful sunny autumnal afternoon. It was around 12 degrees, but nice and crisp. Around the three min ponds, we saw 6 Southern Hawker, including an oviposting female and a number of Common Darter. Not bad for mid October.

Early October Sightings

2010-10-11T20:05:00.002+01:00

As we get more autumnal, our dragonflies are on the decline, however there are still some to be seen when the sun comes out:

4th Oct - Darryl Sutcliffe reports a late season Southern Hawker at Brixworth Country Park.
7th Oct - Migrant Hawkers and Common Darter on the River Ise at Burton Latimer.
10th Oct - A Common Blue Damselfly was seen at Billing Mill.
11th Oct - Darryl reports 6+ Common Darter, 4+ Migrant Hawker & a Southern Hawker at Brackmills Industrial Estate, Northampton.

Late Sepember Update

2010-09-25T21:43:00.003+01:00

Still plenty of dragons flying, with Migrants, Common Darter and Ruddy Darter along with Common Blue and Blue-tailed Damselflies at Wilsons Pits on Wednesday 21 Sept. I also disturbed a teneral Darter that flew into the trees. I was hoping it was a Red-veined Darter as around now is the expected emergence time. I took a grab shot from quite a distance, but it was a Common Darter. Still, this is quite a late emergence although given the predictions of cold weather coming, its future may not be too bright.

Darryl visited Brackmills Industrial estate in Northampton and saw the following: 7 Migrants, including two males by the fishing pond, and at least two females hunting in the glades; 3+ Common Darter.

14 degrees C and four species flying at Ditchford

2010-09-17T19:03:00.003+01:00

The weather really is changing and this lunchtime it was only 14 degrees at Dtichford, with some sun. Still, four species were flying in these cool temperatures: Migrant Hawker, Brown Hawker, Common Darter and Common Blue Damselfly. I suspect that this year won't be noteworthy for late sightings, although Anglia News weather said temperatures are set to reach 22 degrees next week!

Yesterday (16th), Doug Goddard and Bob Bullock saw an Emerald Damselfly. This is a good late date, despite the cooling weather.

Thrapston Lakes

2010-09-12T18:05:00.002+01:00

Walking the Mother-in-Law's dog around the lake at Thrapston, we saw 100+ Migrant Hawker, buzzing around the open areas by the lake and between the lake and the river. Quite an impressive sight. Also around were a few Common Darter, Brown Hawker, Southern Hawker and several Common Blue Damselflies.

Migrant Hawkers & Common Darters

2010-08-31T20:10:00.004+01:00

Back from holiday in Turkey where we had 39 degrees C every day. I didn't go dragonfly hunting because it was too hot, but did manage to see plenty of Red-veined Darters (typical isn't it, you go 1800 miles and see a species that appeared in Northants last year!), and a new one for me - a Small Skimmer.

Anyway, back to Northants. Ditchford was buzzing with Migrant Hawker, with almost 100 males, females and mating pairs flying around. Not as many Common Darter as I was expecting though. Still some Brown Hawker, Common Blues and a few Red-eyes.

I managed a few in flight shots, shown above, including a sequence of a male cleaning ist legs to remove some fluff collected while he was hunting through the reeds.

Emerald Damselflies

2010-07-24T22:02:00.002+01:00

With all the excitement about Southern Emerald Damselflies, I thought I would look at some of our local normal Emerald Damselflies. Despite the cloudy conditions, we found several oviposting pairs. Interestingly, they were egg laying in spike rush stems quite some distance from the water, presumably to allow the stems to die back over winter and provide some protection until the eggs hatch in the spring.

Migrant Hawkers emerging

2010-07-11T18:00:00.001+01:00

At Ditchford, on a hot but windy afternoon my son located our first Migrant Hawker exuviae along with several Emperors. Flying were a few Emperors, Brown Hawkers with many females oviposting in the muddy banks, and the usual Damselflies including an Emerald, the first sighting here in over 7 years. I have always wondered why I have never seen Emeralds here.

Small Red-eyes at Wicksteed Park and Abdingdon Meadow

2010-07-10T09:25:00.003+01:00

I discovered a walk from Weetabix, up the River Ise to the nature trail at Wicksteed Park. In the scorching heat on Friday I went to have a look. The fishing pond had many Red-eyes, several Small Red-eyes including oviposting pairs, Fourspotted Chaser, Brown Hawker, Emperor, Common Blue, Blue-tail and Black-tailed Skimmer. The main lake by the train track also had ovipostoing Small Red-eyes. These are new sites for this species.

Doug Goddard reports Small Red-eyes at Abingdon Meadow, along with Emperors, Brown Hawker, Four-spots and Black-tailed Skimmer.

Small Red-eyed Damselfies at Higham Ferrers Pits

2010-07-08T18:44:00.003+01:00

This lunchtime, the weather cleared from what was a dull morning with spots of rain (rain - what's that I hear you ask?). By 1230hrs, it was bright sunshine and 25 degrees. There were many Small Red-eyes visible from the fishing stands with several pairs in cop and ovipsoting. There were also many Red-eyes, Common Blues, Blue-tails, Four-spotted Chaser, Brown Hawker and Emperors, but it was the Small Red-eyes that attracted my attention. I came heer last week ans saw none.

A day at Yardley Chase

2010-07-04T16:10:00.003+01:00

With the rest of the family occupied, I took Alex to the Chase for days dragonfly hunting. There was a lot of activity, mainly oviposting Emperors and Four-spotted Chaser. Only a couple of Downys remained and none stuck around to be photographed. The highlight was seeing several Ruddy Darter and Emerald Damselflies. The Azure Damselflies took exception to the oviposting Emperors, by continuously hasselung them. This is a well known phenomena, which hasn't been fully explained yet. From the observations I made I have a theory which I will include in a future edition of Dragonfly News.

Scarce Chasers and Common Darter at Stanwick Lakes

2010-06-26T13:23:00.004+01:00

This morning, I co-hosted a Dragonfly & Butterfly walk at Stanwick Lakes with Doug Goddard. We had a good number of attendees and managed to show them several species of Butterfly as well as many dragonflies. Around the ponds near the ranger's office we saw many Common Blue, Red-eyed and Blue-tailed Damseflies including >20 pairs of the latter mating. We also found several exuviae which we discussed with the group. Four-spotted Chaser and Black-tailed Skimmer were also buzzing around the ponds. Moving on to the River Nene, we added many male and female Banded Demoiselle to our list, and at one spot on the river, a male Hairy Dragonfly was hawking low down among the reeds looking for a female and a solitary Emperor went passed, not to return. The highlight of the day was at the end of the trip, when we walked to the footbridge over the river. Unfortunately, the bridge was closed after some unruly behaviour, so we could not walk across, but wading through the grass towards the water's edge, we spotted a number of Scarce Chaser over the water, and Doug found one in a convenient position to photograph (see above). This is the first record at Stanwick Lakes, after several years of searching, and a fitting end to a good (if not hot) walk.

Prior to the trip, Doug found the first Common Darter seen this year.

Scarce Chasers at Waddenhoe

2010-06-23T20:14:00.002+01:00

Returning from Cheltenham, I stopped off at Waddenhoe as this is my chosen site for the BDS Monitoring scheme. I am monitoring Scarce Chaser numbers over several years to see if there are any population changes. Today, I counted 37 Scarce Chaser between the Mill and the footbridge, which only covers one bank of the river. This implies there were >60 territorial males in total on both banks. Several pairs were in-cop, as shown in my photos above. I also managed to capture a male hovering.

Wilson's Pits

2010-06-22T21:21:00.004+01:00

A good hot day, ideal for dragonfly activity. At Wilson's Pits there were high numbers oviposting Common Blues, Red-eyes and Black-tailed Skimmer. The Red-eye above found himself a nice territory, only to repeatedly be hassled by jealous Common Blues.

Yardley Chase MOD Section

2010-06-22T21:14:00.003+01:00

The MOD held an open day at the Yardley Chase training section. I wasn't able to go, but Doug, Bob and Jeff attended. All reported seeing Downy Emerald and a Beautiful Demoislle. Doug sent on this photo. This is the furthest east for this species so far. How long will it be before thy reach the River Ise, where there is plenty of suitable breeding habitat?

River Nene at Thrapston

2010-06-20T18:09:00.002+01:00

We took a walk along the Nene at Thrapston. It was quite windy, but nice and sunny and the dragons were still around. We saw several Scarce Chaser, including the one above showing mating scars. Also large numbers of Banded Demoiselle and still a few Large Red Damselflies.

Brown Hawkers and Scarce Chaser

2010-06-16T20:08:00.004+01:00

On a windy day, I came across my first emerging Brown Hawker at Ditchford. One emergee had damaged wings and another emerged right into a spider's nest and was sucked dry by the time I found it. Also several Black-tailed Skimmer (always good to see here as they are declining somewhat), Hairys and the usual Damselflies.

Mark Piper and Nick Roberts report seeing a Scarce Chaser on the River Nene at Harpole Mill. This is the furthest west on the Nene that Scarce Chaser have been recorded. There was a sighting 2.5km east of here last year, so I am left wondering if there may be a small colony nearby. It's certainly a fair way to fly from the usual sites near Thrapston.

Southern Hawkers

2010-06-16T08:34:00.000+01:00

Bob Bullock sent in this year's first record of Southern Hawker, seen on 6 June.

Scarce Chasers at the old National Dragonfly Museum site

2010-06-05T12:20:00.005+01:00

I took a walk along the footpath by the Nene from the Old Mill to the weir. This is the site of the former National Dragonfly Biomuseum, until around 2003 when Ruary and the team moved out. At this time, Scarce Chaser were not known in the County and certainly not here. Today, we counted in excess of 100 maturing males clashing over the water between the Old Mill and the Weir. Also, many Hairy Dragonlfly and the usual damselflies.

Four-spotted Chaser in flight

2010-06-03T21:30:00.002+01:00

There were a few Four-spotted Chaser buzzing around Ditchford this lunchtime, and I managed this shot before my camera buffer ran out (I must invest in that new £3500 Canon 1D Mk IV!). Still, it shows the power of this insect in flight, and is a shot I am very pleased with. Also seen were 1000+ damselflies (all usual types), many Hairy Dragonflies and several Emperor exuviae.

Broad-bodied Chasers at Tywell Hills & Dales

2010-06-02T19:34:00.002+01:00

The Whitestone ponds at Tywell Hills & Dales reserve are temporary ponds that frequently dry out in summer - they are essentially clay-filled holes that collect rain water. Every year though, they seem to be home to breeding Broad-bodied Chaser. I popped there this lunchtime and was lucky enough to see a male at territory capture and mate with a passing female. She went on to ovipost into a clump of what looks like hornwort. My photos aren't great as my camera couldn't keep up with the speed of her movement. I usually shoot in RAW, but my camera buffers-out after 15 shots, so I had to change to jpg to get 99 continuous shots and capture some of the action.

Scarce Chasers maturing

2010-05-30T18:28:00.004+01:00

The high winds today made dragonfly activity fairly low, so we went geocaching around the Achurch / Waddenhoe area (there are two caches around this here). We walked from Waddenhoe to Achurch and along to Lilford. Between Achurch and Lilford, there is a sunny ride betwen the trees, and there we found 50-100 Scarce Chaser enjoying the sunshine. The trees shielded the path from the wind and it was definately a sun trip. Most of the Chasers were orange and a few of the males were showing signs of blue pruinescence.

First Emperor of the Year at Summer Leys

2010-05-30T17:43:00.003+01:00

Doug Goddard reporst seeing this year's first Emperor, a recent emergent sheltering from today's high winds. Doug also recorded this Reed Bunting with a beak full of Damselflies to feed young.

Beautiful Demoiselle on the River Tove

2010-05-27T19:10:00.001+01:00

Towcester's Beautiful Demoiselles have begun to appear on the River Tove, Northampton Road. Chris Emary found a few here as well as on the Tove at Greens Norton.

Black-tailed Skimmers emerging at Upton

2010-05-27T19:07:00.002+01:00

Darryl Sutcliffe has visited the pond at Upton where the Red-veined Darters were seen last year. There was no sign of any emergees (did the larvae survive our extremely cold winter?). He did find several recently emerged Broad-bodied Chaser and Black-tailed Skimmer at the Pineham end. Darryl's photos are posted above.

Emergence on the River Ise

2010-05-25T19:03:00.002+01:00

I popped down to the Ise between Finedon and Wellingborough and found 2 White-legged Damselflies emerging and a number of Banded Demoiselle too. Not quite the mass emergence seen by Jim at Waddenhoe, but a good date for White-legs.

Mass Scarce Chaser emergence

2010-05-25T18:21:00.002+01:00

The stunning weekend weather prompted a mass emergence of Scarce Chaser on the River Nene at Waddenhoe. Jim Dunkley visited on 24 May and saw so many emerging, he lost count! Scarce Chaser are known for their mass emergence, and this is a good example, probably helped by the previously chilly weather turnng very hot. A similar emergence was recorded at Woddwalton Fenn (Cambs) over the weekend.

Hairy Dragonflies at Fawsley Hall lakes

2010-05-23T21:12:00.003+01:00

Hairy Dragonflies have been advancing west over the last few years and have now been recorded at Fawsley Hall, in the very west of Northamptonshire by Doug Goddard. This is the furthest west in the County and may actually represent eastwards expansion from Warwickshire.

Broad-bodied Chasers

2010-05-23T21:10:00.001+01:00

Doug Goddard reports two Broad-bodied Chaser at Twywell Hills and Dales.

The Hottest Weekend!

2010-05-23T20:22:00.006+01:00

Well, what a change in temperature. Two weeks ago, temperatures were hovering around the 10-12 degree mark with a chilly north-westerly wind. This weekend has seen conditions approaching 30 degrees. Dragonflies like the hot sunshine, however at temps over 30degrees, they become less active.

On my way home from a business trip on Friday 21 May, I took a detour to the Nene at Lilford, Waddenhoe and Aldwincle looking for Scarce Chaser. This time last year, emergence was well underway, but this year I struggled and only found one. The cold weather must have delayed them somewhat. I expect now that emergence has begun, we will start to see them now and the Bank Holiday weekend may be a good time to look.

At Yardley Chase, Downy Emeralds were emerging in good numbers (see photos above) and Large Reds were very active mating and oviposting.

The River Nene at Thrapston yielded another Scarce Chaser along with ~100 Banded Demoiselle, 2 Hairys and many Common Blue and Red-eyed Damselflies.

Banded Demoiselle appearing on the Nene and Ise

2010-05-18T20:27:00.003+01:00

I saw male and female Banded Demoiselle on the Nene near Rushden and the Ise near Weetabix on 17 and 18 May. The Ise also hade Large Red, Azure and Common Blue Damselflies.

Downy Emeralds emerging

2010-05-15T17:37:00.003+01:00

A turn in the weather to warm sunshine (16 degrees!) brought out a few emerging dragonflies at Yardley Chase this morning. After quite some hunting, we found a single male Downy Emerald emerging among several Four-spotted Chaser, including one unfortunate male being eaten from the tip of his abdomen by a spider, we rescued the Chaser, but it died through fluid loss. Two years as a larvae, 1 hour as an adult and you're breakfast for a hungry spider!! We found 6+ Hairy Dragonfly exuviae including a couple emerging. Also present were several Large Red, Azure and Blue-tailed Damselfly. The cold weather of recent weeks has certainly slowed emergence and adult numbers are still low. The coming weeks looks good though, so we may see a bit of a catch-up - I would expect Banded Demoiselle and Broad-bodied Chaser to be around by now. We did see a few BB Chaser larvae at the surface of the water, which is a good sign that they will emerge soon.

Four-spotted Chasers

2010-05-10T22:00:00.001+01:00

Jeff Blincow reports the first Four-spotted Chaser of the year at Yardley Chase on Sunday 9 May.

Azure Damselflies at Wilson's Pits

2010-05-07T19:04:00.005+01:00

Wilson's Pits always has a large number of Azure Damselflies in early May, declining as the season progresses to be replaced by Common Blue. Today there were only a few (10-20) and the odd Red-eyed Damselfly. I managed to capture these pictures of a female eating a small fly. The cool weather meant that they were quite docile, although the dull conditions made getting a decent picture quite hard. The top picture shows a Common Blue with striking pink colouration.

Common Blues emerging in good numbers

2010-05-05T19:14:00.003+01:00

At Ditchford today, despite the overcast weather, I saw around 100 Common Blue Damselflies emerging and fluttering along the hedgerow. In amongst them were around 20 Red-eyed Damselfly. Both were in their typical juvenile colouration, with the Red-eyes looking especially drab (see above) showing none of the beautiful colour they will obtain in a few days. At the water margin, many more were emerging with plenty of exuviae. Four Hairy Dragonfly were emerging too, including the one above with a mal-formed wing. I think she is ~1 day old looking at her colouration compared with the others that had just emerged today.

Still a little slow out there!

2010-05-04T19:17:00.003+01:00

The north westerly winds are bring low temperatures and cold air that are appears to be slowing emergence somewhat. By 4 May, I would expect at least two more species to have begun emergence and Large Reds in much greater numbers. At Southfield Farm Marsh this lunchtime, despite nice sunshine I only saw two Large Red Damselflies including one recently emerged. I couldn't find any new exuviae, which implies a low level of emergence so far.

Hungry Blue-tailed Damselfly

2010-05-03T18:15:00.005+01:00

Paul Mellows of Wellingborough sent in this photo of a rufescens form female Blue-tailed Damselfly consuming a crane fly. The Damselfly emerged from his pond on 27 April, making it the first record of this species in Northants. Its a great photo of our smallest dragonfly eating a meal that is at least as big as itself. Thanks for the record and excellent picture Paul!

Large Red Damselfy & Hairy Dragonfly Emerging

2010-05-01T14:03:00.003+01:00

Despite poor weather forecasts for this weekend, it was bright and warm this morning so we ventred out and discovered more activity with ~60 Large Red Damselfly including many emerging and 2 Hairy Dragonfly emerging.

Hairy Dragonfly Emerging

2010-04-27T18:28:00.003+01:00

I went back to Southfield Farm Marsh again hoping to photograph some of the Large Reds. They were still playing hard to get and I didn't manage a single shot. However, I did find this emerging Hairy Dragonfly. Sorry about the poor picture - she was so low down among the reeds that this was the best I could get without ruining my work clothes (not great to go to a 1400hrs meeting covered in smelly pond mud!). I have seen Hairys here before, but never been able to prove breeding until now. I bumped into someone who told me that our friend John Showers, who was busy Hoverfly hunting, had seen an Azure Damselfly here earlier. I didn't see it though. Looking at the BDS Hot News page, this is the first Hairy seen this year and with the Azure we have the highest number of recorded species so far this year!

First Large Red Damselflies

2010-04-26T20:50:00.003+01:00

Great weather on Saturday prompted a search at Yardley Chase , but nothing was seen except one Emperor larva basking at the water's surface. At lunchtime today, I walked to Southfields Farm Marsh SSSI near work and found 2 emerging Large Red Damselflies. Neither stayed to be photographed but flew straight into the trees surrounding the pond. The weather looks to be getting better during the week, so I will return and see if more are about and I can get that first photo.

Dragonflies Appearing in the South

2010-04-14T18:02:00.002+01:00

After a harsh winter, the dragonflies are beginning to appear around 1-2 weeks later than in recent years, with Azure Damselfly and Large Red Damselfly seen in Essex and elsewhere. Northants is normally 2-3 weeks after the first sightings, which may mean we are slightly later than normal too. Good weather between now and end of April may change this, so keep an eye out!

More Red-veined Darters

2009-10-04T17:52:00.004+01:00

I visited again, hoping to find some males and again only found females, still they are very attractive and worth seeing. I met Jim D. and we saw 2-3 (it's dificult to tell when they are buzzing around). Also many pairs of mating Common Darter, a few Migrants and Common Blue Damselflies. I had to check all the male Darters just in case they were of the Red-veined variety.

Red-veined Darters turning Red

2009-10-02T16:47:00.003+01:00

Graham Bentley shot this picture which shows a male turning red and getting its red veins. I visited today (Friday) to see how they were doing, but the weather was cool and cloudy and I only saw one female (top photo) and no males. I did find 4 emerging though, which is quite something for October.

Migrant Hawkers at Thrapston Lakes

2009-09-27T18:19:00.002+01:00

Still plenty of Migrant Hawkers around at Thrapston Lakes, including this mating pair.

Red-veined Darters

2009-09-27T18:17:00.002+01:00

Graham and I found about 4 more Red-veinded Darters today (26 Sept), all of them recently emerged, taking their first flights.

More Red-veinded Darters Emerging

2009-09-23T20:07:00.004+01:00

Jim Dunkley has sent me these photos from 22 Sept which show a male RvD recently emerged along with its exuvia. Note the bicoloured pterostigma on the wings and the reduced abdominal spines on the exuvia. The blue-grey eyes are not clear, perhaps because this is a very recently emerged adult.

Red-veined Darters AND Black Darter at Upton

2009-09-19T19:31:00.007+01:00

Following the sightings of the Red-veined Darters oviposting at Upton, I have been visiting every week since the beginning of September to see if any adults had emerged. Well, today was the day!. I was with my son and we met Alan who was also looking for them. We were looking for exuviae in the reeds, when we spotted a Black Darter. Whether this is the same one seen by Doug Goddard at Weston Mill last week is not known, but if it isn't it means there may be more elsewhere. I managed to grab a couple of not very good pictures as it didn't settle for long. When we lost sight of it, we hunted in the ditch and noticed that a male Common Darter was attempting to mate with a very fresh looking female. This turned out to be a newly emerged Red-veined Darter. We got some good photos, and went on to see up to two more all of which were being harassed by male Common Darter. On the way back we located two exuviae.

The Red-veined Darters were beautiful (especially compared with the drab Black Darter). The contrast of the blue-grey lower half of the eyes with the red-brown upper part is incredible and the blue-grey really stands out. The coming week may see more emergences. It is expected that these adults will leave and fly south within a few weeks, and will not stay to breed.

Went to see the Black Darter

2009-09-12T17:49:00.003+01:00

I went to Weston Mill pond today, but must have missed the Black Darter. As compensation, I got this shot of a Migrant Hawker and a pair of oviposting Common Darter.

Black Darter Confirmed

2009-09-12T16:57:00.002+01:00

Bob B., Darryl S., Nick R. and Graham B. visited the Mill pond on 11 Sept. and saw the Black Darter again, with further photos taken by Bob (above). My visit today (12 Sept) couldn't find it - it must have heard I was coming. Steve Cham has confirmed what we all believe, that it is an wandering Black Darter. But where doid it come from?

Is this a Black Darter??

2009-09-10T19:59:00.004+01:00

Doug Goddard has sent me these two images that show a "Black" darter seen at Abington Meadow pond near Weston Mill. Is it a Black Darter (the first for Northants), a very very mature Ruddy Darter or a melanistic Darter.?? I have never seen one like this before. If it is an aged adult, I would also expect the wings to show signs of age too.

Migrant Hawkers

2009-08-28T18:42:00.006+01:00

We have recently returned from our family Holiday in South Devon, where we saw Gold-ringed Dragonflies, without really looking for them. My first local trip was to Ditchford on 27 August. Here there were 50+ Migrant Hawkers, many at territory allowing me to practice my in-flight photography techniques. These are two of my favourites.

Stanwick Lakes

2009-08-02T16:05:00.004+01:00

Common Blue Damselflies were busy fighting for what few females were available, although there were few males around to be honest. The above photos show a single male in flight and a group of males hovering around a submerged female. Also, in amongst the Common Blues was a single Small Red-eye, a first for Stanwick Lakes, a few Black-tailed Skimmer, Common Darter and a single male Emperor.

2009-08-01T11:38:00.005+01:00

Warmer conditions on Friday lead to some activity at Yardley Chase, mainly Emerald Damselflues, Ruddy Darter and Brown Hawker. I managed to capture a Common Darter in flight, Ruddy Darter mating and an oviposting Brown Hawker.

What's going on here?

2009-07-29T17:50:00.003+01:00

I filmed this female Broad Bodied Chaser from the underside and noticed that there seems to be a definite 'split' in the body - anyone noticed this before? ..and what is this called etc etc....

Darters at Ditchford

2009-07-25T17:03:00.004+01:00

A curious Common Darter

Male Ruddy Darter with the blood-red body.

We are now in the cross-over time between the summer species and the first appearence of the autumn species. The number of Common Blue Damselflies at Ditchford have plummeted from a peak of 500+ to ~100. Emperors are declining and Brown Hawker are ascending. We saw many oviposting Brown Hawker which is typical for this time of year. A few Migrant Hawker exuviae were found including one make with damaged wings. A single Ruddy Darter and a few Common Darter were also around.

Pitsford Reservoir

2009-07-23T20:39:00.003+01:00

At last, some sunshine so I popped to Pisford at lunchtime in search of Ruddy Darter and Emerald Damselflies. Also present, Four-spotted Chaser, Brown Hawker, Southrn Hawker, Azure, Blue-tail and Common Blue Damsels. Both Ruddy and Emeralds were in-cop, so shown in the photos above.

Lesser Emperor Sighting at Pitsford

2009-07-15T17:45:00.001+01:00

I have received a thorough descrition of the sightng of Lesser Emperor at Pitsford, and have added it to this year's total.

New Sightings

2009-07-14T19:35:00.003+01:00

11 July - Chris Emary reported this year's first Migrant Hawker at Greens Norton.

4 July - Doug Goddard forwarded a note from a northants birding site that a Lesser Emperor was sighted at Pitsford Reservoir. This remains unconfirmed at the moment. I have contacted the source who may be able to send more info.

Fermyn Woods Country Park

2009-07-11T14:18:00.002+01:00

Darryl Sutcliffe visited Fermyn Woods CP to see the Purple Emperor butterfly, fortunately he also sent in records of the following:

At the Reedy Pond:
2 male Emperor, one defending territory, one female Emperor ovipositing.
3 Four-spotted Chaser, one on territory.
Ruddy Darter – 3+
Azure damselfly – 50+, with at least 10 pairs ovipositing.
Blue tailed damselfly -10+
Common blue damselfly - 5+
Emerald damselfly – 1 male

At the Big Pit Pond, with the dragonfly sculpture:
Four-spotted Chaser - one on territory.
Red-eyed damselfly – one male
Azure damselfly – 20+
Blue-tailed damselfly – 10+

At the Great-crested Newt Pond:
Brown Hawker – 2 male
Southern Hawker – 1 male, 1 female ovipositing when not disturbed by FSC.
Four spotted chaser – 3 males, 1 female ovipositing.
Ruddy Darter – 2+
Azure damselfly – 200+, with at least 50 pairs ovipositing.
Blue tailed damselfly -10+
Common blue damselfly - 5+
Emerald damselfly – 6 male

This is one of my favourote sites in Northants, as the ponds are small and accessible and it is great for the kids.

Emperors at the Red-veined Darter Pond

2009-07-04T17:27:00.007+01:00

I returned to the Red-veined Darter pond, after a week of high activity there that saw up to 6 males and oviposting recorded at least twice. While the temperature was still hovering around 24 degrees it was quite windy. I only saw 2 males R-v Darters and neither hung around to be photographed. Instead I watched a male Emperor at territory occassionally hovering into the wind and managed the above photos. He saw and grabbed a female and I also caught them in-cop. Also seen was an oviposting Broad-bodied Chaser and many Common Darter. I walked through the grasslands in the hope of finding some roosting R-v Darters and promptly disturbed a male Scarce Chaser. On returning home, I picked up an e-mail from Mark Piper saying that he and Nick Roberts had also seen one on the Nene in this area. Could it have been the same one??? This is the furthest west on the Nene that they have been seen, Last year, Darryl Sutcliffe recorded on at Billing Mill, and Upton is quite a way further west from there.

Small Red-eyes at Higham Ferrers

2009-07-03T18:25:00.002+01:00

Black-tailed Skimmer

Following Mark's sighting, I went to Higham Ferrers pits and saw several Small Red-eyes including many pairs in-cop already. They must be at least 1 week old. Also, many Black-tailed Skimmer, Brown Hawker and Emperors.

Small Red-eyed Damselfly

2009-07-01T18:33:00.002+01:00

Mark Piper has reported the first Small Red-eyed Damselflies at ponds near Ravensthorpe Reservoir.

More Red-veined Darter Activity

2009-06-29T21:12:00.002+01:00

Mark P. revisited the site on Sun 28 June and a number of dragonfly enthusiasts went there today. Jim Dinkley & Bob Bullock reported seeing an oviposting pair, which is really exciting news. This species has a 2-3 month larval time and adults can be expected to emerge in September. Jeff Blincow took the above photo.