Small Red Damselfly and Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly in North Wales

June 11, 2011:
North Wales is home to several species of damselfly which are of restricted or otherwise southern distribution in Britain. Sites for two of these were visited today. One, near Pendrhyndeudraeth, is a beautiful small lake known to have a rich Odonata fauna of which the Small Red Damselfly (Ceriagrion tenellum) is a speciality. This species occurs in a limited area of the lake margin where it favours the rather unstable raised acidic bog. Today there were large numbers of Large Red Damselflies (Pyrrhosoma nymphula) flying and it took a long period of searching before two individuals of the Small Red were found.


[Small Red Damselfly, male, all red body and red legs, near Pendrhyndeudraeth]

They differ from the black-legged Large Reds in having a completely red abdomen and reddish legs and are also smaller and more delicate. Also flying here were Common Blue and Common Blue-tailed Damselflies as well as Four-spotted Chasers and Keeled Skimmers (photos below).

Later, I made a visit to a second small lake within this general area to look for Scarce Blue-tailed Damselflies (Ischnura pumilio). This was near Llanrwst, a known locality and another idyllic site. A delay due a puncture meant arrival here was very late in the afternoon and for a while nothing at all was seen but eventually some movement in the lakeside vegetation revealed a single male pumilio and later two orange immature females.


[Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly, immature female, aurantiaca phase, near Llanrwst]


[Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly, male, near Llanrwst]

The immature females are often very brightly coloured (forma aurantiaca) and therefore easily identified. The males though are much more difficult being very similar to the Common Blue-tailed (Ischnura elegans). It is best differentiated from this by having segment 9 of its abdomen coloured blue with only a little blue on segment 8 whereas segment 9 of the Common blue-tailed is black and segment 8 is blue. Consequently, a close view or a good photograph is necessary in order to be completely sure.



[Large Red Damselflies (note the black legs), near Pendrhyndeudraeth]


[Four-spotted Chaser, near Pendrhyndeudraeth]


[Keeled Skimmer, near Pendrhyndeudraeth]

DRAGONFLY: Banded Demoiselles have emerged at Brockholes Wetlands

May 11, 2011:
Banded Demoiselles (Calopteryx splendens) are now flying here. Several males showing their beautiful metallic-blue colouring were resting in the long grass adjacent to the Meadow Pool reed beds. At this date there was no sign of the females which have browner wings lacking the dark banding and a greener thorax and abdomen.




[Males above, female below]

DRAGONFLY: Brown Hawker and Migrant Hawker at Mere Sands, Lancashire

September 16, 2010:
On a cool blustery early autumn day with little sun, it was rather rather surprising to see Brown and Migrant Hawkers flying. They mainly kept to the more sheltered areas at the tree margins but were inclined to settle onto vegetation more frequently than normal. This was especially noticeable for the Brown Hawker as these seem to fly for ever and are rarely seen settled except when ovipositing. Common Darters were also flying as well as Comma, Red Admiral and Speckled Wood butterflies.



Brown Hawker, female (both above), Migrant Hawker, male (both below)

DRAGONFLY: Southern Hawkers (Aeshna cyanea) near Silverdale, Lancashire

September 9, 2010:
A small sheltered pool near Silverdale has several species of dragonfly including Common Darter, Black Darter and the rather scarce Ruddy Darter. Here also are Southern Hawkers but despite having made several visits to the site in the last few weeks, I had failed to get a photo of any at rest. Today, whether it was the temperature, the cooler weather conditions, or the time of day, several males settled obligingly, only spending short periods in flight or buzzing an onlooker, and much preferring to perch at the pool edge on the reed-mace, willow-herb, meadowsweet or bramble.

DRAGONFLY: Southern Hawkers and Common Hawkers near Burnley, Lancashire

September 2/3, 2010:
A small isolated wooded pool close to the Pennine moorland had at least three species of Hawker flying today. The conditions were ideal for dragonflies, windless and very warm in the sheltered hollow amongst the trees. A female Southern Hawker (Aeshna cyanea) attempted to oviposit (below) onto a desiccated log well above water-level and repeatedly changed position in trying to find an acceptable site.





Males also patrolled the area (below), regularly buzzing any observer whilst a Brown Hawker (Aeshna grandis) was seen ovipositing on floating weed but this was on the far side of the pool and out of camera range.


[A patrolling Southern Hawker]

Common Hawkers (Aeshna juncea) were also flying and a bonus came when one settled on the trunk of a nearby pine. At first photographed at long range, it was soon possible to approach extremely closely and even then it didn’t fly, only doing so later to pursue a male which had invaded its territory. Seen against the rough bark of the tree, it was well camouflaged and presumably it knew that.




[Common Hawker]


[The dragonfly pool with a light mist rising]

Several Common Darters (Sympetrum striolatum) were also seen as well as numerous Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria) butterflies. Thanks are due to Allen Holmes for details of this site.

DRAGONFLY: Ruddy Darters and Common Darters in Lancashire

August 19, 2010:
In this area of north-west England the Common Darter (Sympetrum striolatum) is quite frequent, especially in the lowland areas, but the confusingly-similar Ruddy Darter (Sympetrum sanguineum) appears much more scarce. The Ruddys have moved into the county in fairly recent times and are slowly spreading northwards through Cumbria.

The males of both species are red and quite similar to each other and so also are the yellowish females. Fortunately, both species perch readily and allow a close view to be obtained.

The male Ruddy Darter especially, is perhaps most easily distinguished from the Common Darter (Sympetrum striolatum) in having jet black legs (yellow-striped in the Common), by the presence of a conspicuous black line running down the sides of the frons (absent in the Common), having deep red eyes and frons, a blood-red (not orange-red) more waisted abdomen and a rufus thorax.



[Ruddy Darter, male, both above: the completely black legs, the dark line running down the side of the frons and the deep red eyes and abdomen, can be seen]



[Common Darter, male, both above: the yellow-striped legs, the absence of a dark line running down the side of the frons, the paler more brown eyes and the orange-red abdomen, can be seen]

Ruddy Darters appear to favour sheltered vegetation near choked ditches and pools where the males will perch and often return to the same place if disturbed. Ruddys are also noticeably smaller than Common Darters and are more prone to hover. The Common Darter has a tendency to rest on artificial surfaces as well as on vegetation but this doesn't seem to occur anything like so much with the Ruddy Darter.

Thanks are due to Allen Holmes for helpful discussion on some taxonomic points.

DRAGONFLY: Lancashire and south Cumbria dragonflies during a brief improvement in the weather

August 15/16, 2010:
Recently in north-west England, the weather has been very poor and there's been an apparent absence of dragonflies. Some warmth and sunshine on Sunday and Monday offered promise, however. At Brockholes Wetlands (Lancashire) on Sunday, many Brown Hawkers (Aeshna grandis) were flying. Unfortunately these never seem to settle enabling a photo to be taken although one female was seen ovipositing onto pondweed (Potamogeton sp) at one of the small pools.



[Brown Hawker ovipositing, Brockholes]

There was also a large number of Common Darters (Sympetrum striolatum) and, in contrast to the Brown Hawkers, these would usually perch accommodatingly. Many Common Blue Damselflies (Enallagma cyathigerum), several Migrant Hawkers (Aeshna mixta), a Southern Hawker (Aeshna cyanea) and an Emperor (Anax imperator) were also seen.



[Male Common Darters, Brockholes]

On an oak tree at the woodland’s edge there were Purple Hairstreak (Neozephyrus quercus) butterflies; these are often elusive and hard to see. Many of the commoner species visited flowers, especially thistles.


[Purple Hairstreak, Brockholes]

At Foulshaw Moss (south Cumbria) on the following day, the main interest was the Black Darters (Sympetrum danae) present in abundance which is often a feature of the site in late summer. Like their Common relative they were also approachable but not so was a solitary Southern Hawker which, although showing curiosity, never settled. Many Common Blue and Emerald Damselflies (Lestes sponsa) active amongst the fringing water plants.


[Pool at Foulshaw]



[Male Black Darters, Foulshaw]


[Emerald Damselflies, Foulshaw]


[Emerald Damselfly, Foulshaw]

Not too far away is the small secluded tarn at Barkbooth. Here an Emperor patrolled the water and there were also two very inquisitive Southern Hawkers and many of the same two species of damselfly as at Foulshaw.


[The small tarn, Barkbooth]


[An inquisitive Southern Hawker, Barkbooth]

DRAGONFLY: Black Darters and Emerald Damselflies at Foulshaw Moss, Cumbria

August 2, 2010:
Today, in one of the few local sunny spells for quite a long while, Black Darters and Emerald Damselflies were flying in good numbers, The Black Darters were mostly males but Emerald Damselflies ranged from emergent tenerals to mature ones. Common Blue, and Blue-tailed, Damselflies were also present, the former in large numbers, as well as an occasional Common Darter and a single patrolling Emperor.

[Black Darter, males, below]




[Emerald Damselflies]

DRAGONFLY: Emperor at Foulshaw Moss, Cumbria

July 23, 2010:
In intermittent late afternoon sunshine at the small pool at Foulshaw, a male Emperor (Anax imperator) restlessly quartered the water.



I watched it for over an hour and it never settled even for a moment throughout this time although on three occasions it successfully chased off an intruding male. Eventually, a female arrived at the pool and then within seconds, after a brief flurry, the pair were settled down in the vegetation. So this was a rare opportunity to get a photo of these mobile insects.




[Male]