My first two Beautiful demoiselles of the year, seen flying along the edges of the woodland rides at Casehill Woods last Sunday, were both camera shy but this third demoiselle, the first female was much more cooperative. The Beautiful demoiselle, also sometimes, most appropriately called Beautiful jewelwing, bears the scientific name Calopteryx virgo, and I can go further to add that she is the sub species virgo, because of the pale colour at the base of her wings. And, in fact, looking back through all my photos of this species, I see that all are this subspecies, so perhaps they are the only ones found in my part of south Wales.

My guide book, Smallshire and Swash’s Europe’s Dragonflies, notes that this is the ‘largest demoiselle in Europe’ and that this species ‘frequently strays well away from water’. Well, that second fact is most definitely true for the beautiful creature pictured here: she was flitting along the trees edging a footpath at least 500 metres from the nearest water.