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~ a celebration of nature

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Tag Archives: dragonfly

296/365 Migrant hawkers

23 Wednesday Oct 2019

Posted by sconzani in autumn, insects, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

British dragonflies, dragonflies, dragonfly, Migrant hawker

Yesterday was the first time I’ve ever seen female (on the left) and male Migrant hawkers together. These two were hanging on a fence at Goldcliff lagoons, near Newport. What a treat!

191023 migrant hawkers

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279/365 A yellow Red-veined darter

06 Sunday Oct 2019

Posted by sconzani in insects, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

British dragonflies, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, dragonfly, immature male Red-veined darter, Red-veined darter

What’s bright yellow, flies like a helicopter, has relatively huge eyes that are half reddish-brown and half blue, and can sometimes be found in marshy, reed-filled areas in the south-west of Britain?

191005 red-veined darter

I wasn’t sure until I looked it up but it seems this stunning creature that I photographed at Cosmeston a couple of days ago is an immature male Red-veined darter.

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247/365 On the menu

04 Wednesday Sep 2019

Posted by sconzani in 365DaysWildin2019, insects, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

#365DaysWild, British dragonflies, dragonflies, dragonfly, dragonfly eating wasp, Hawker dragonflies, Southern hawker, wasp

Today’s lunchtime snack for this Southern hawker dragonfly had a sting in the tail: it was a wasp. The dragonfly, though, started its meal from the other end, first devouring the head, then removing the wings, before steadily munching its way down the body.

190904 southern hawker (2)

This was obviously not good news for the wasp but it was good news for me, as this was the first Southern hawker that’s stayed still long enough this year for me to grab some photos.

190904 southern hawker (1)

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237/365 A resident migrant

25 Sunday Aug 2019

Posted by sconzani in 365DaysWildin2019, insects, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

British dragonflies, dragonflies, dragonfly, Hawker dragonfly, Migrant hawker

The Migrant hawker’s name is somewhat misleading – it does still like to migrate away from where it was hatched and was once only seen in Britain when it migrated here from Europe. But, since the 1940s, ever increasing numbers have come here and this species does now breed in Britain, where its range continues to expand northwards.

190825 migrant hawker (1)

I’ve seen a few of these dragonflies this year but today was the first time one has settled long enough for me to get a few photos. That was probably because, despite our high daytime temperatures, it is now quite a bit cooler at night, and, as I was out relatively early this morning, I found this little one still basking in the sun trying to warm up.

190825 migrant hawker (2)

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231/365 Winning smiles

19 Monday Aug 2019

Posted by sconzani in 365DaysWildin2019, insects, nature

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

British dragonflies, Common Darter, dragonfly

Common darters are the dragonflies I see most often at this time of year, and what gorgeous odonata they are! I think these are male and female – the problem is that immature males look a lot like females and my photos haven’t captured well the tell-tale bulge that the males have. I was more interested in their winning ‘smiles’.

190819 common darter male190819 common darter female

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216/365 Ovipositing

04 Sunday Aug 2019

Posted by sconzani in 365DaysWildin2019, insects, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

#365DaysWild, British dragonflies, dragonfly, dragonfly ovipositing, Emperor dragonfly, female Emperor ovipositing, Lavernock Nature Reserve, oviposit

Oviposit: verb; a zoological term, relating especially to insects, which means to lay an egg or eggs. According to the Oxford Dictionary, the word first came in to use in the early 19th century and is a combination of ‘ovi’ for egg and ‘posit’, from the Latin verb ponere, meaning to place.

190804 female emperor (2)

Today, at Lavernock Nature Reserve, I was eating my lunch while sitting on the bench near the dragonfly pond, when this female Emperor dragonfly came along and began ovipositing, carefully manoeuvring her body to place several eggs beneath each lily pad before moving on to the next. All the while, her mate was patrolling overhead to ensure no one interfered with this important process.

190804 female emperor (1)

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214/365 Red-veined darter

02 Friday Aug 2019

Posted by sconzani in 365DaysWildin2019, insects, nature

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Tags

British dragonflies, dragonfly, female Red-veined darter, Red-veined darter, Sympetrum fonscolombii

I’ve been holding off sharing images of this beautiful creature, hoping that I might spot a male and so be able to share both sexes. But as that hasn’t yet happened …

190802 red-veined darter (1)

This, I am reliably informed by dragonfly experts, is an older female Red-veined darter (Sympetrum fonscolombii) – the fact that she’s older can be determined by the reddish colouring along the top of her torso. Though the photo above was taken on 8 July and the photo below on 20 July, I think these may well be the same female, as the location was almost exactly the same, and I’ve seen no others in that general area. You can read more about her, and see images of the stunning red males, on the British Dragonflies website.

190802 red-veined darter (2)

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210/365 Butterfly for brunch

29 Monday Jul 2019

Posted by sconzani in 365DaysWildin2019, insects, nature

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

British dragonflies, dragonfly, dragonfly eating butterfly, Emperor dragonfly, Meadow Brown

It’s often quite difficult to catch up with Emperor dragonflies as they seem to be in constant motion, patrolling their patch or hawking for food across flower-filled fields and meadows. But I spotted this one carrying a large load, relatively speaking, and, though dragonflies will often feed as they fly, this beautiful beast decided to pause and enjoy its brunch quite near to me.

190729 emperor dragonfly

You can’t really tell from my photo but it was munching on a Meadow brown. As I watched, first one wing, then another was plucked off and discarded, before the main course was consumed. Not exactly what I’d fancy for my brunch, and I did feel a little sorry for the butterfly, but this is the reality of wild life.

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177/365 Skimmers

26 Wednesday Jun 2019

Posted by sconzani in 365DaysWildin2019, insects, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

#365DaysWild, Black-tailed skimmer, British dragonflies, Cosmeston, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, dragonflies, dragonfly

I was just saying to someone the other day that I haven’t been seeing many dragonflies this year and what happens? The very next time I go walking at Cosmeston, I see several.

190626 black-tailed skimmers (2)

These two Black-tailed skimmers were the most obliging, as they tend to station themselves along the pathways through the wildflower fields, rising up as you get near them and then re-settling a little further along the path. If you watch where they land and you’re slow and quiet as you approach, you can get quite near them.

190626 black-tailed skimmers (1)

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160/365 Spoilt for choice

09 Sunday Jun 2019

Posted by sconzani in 365DaysWildin2019, insects, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

#365DaysWild, Black-tailed skimmer, British butterflies, British dragonflies, butterfly, Clouded yellow, Cosmeston, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, dragonfly

I may have got rather wet during my walk around the east and west paddocks at Cosmeston this morning but it was worth it, as I wandered through an abundance of gorgeous orchids and other colourful wildflowers, spied numerous small insects munching on leaves, was charmed by the fluttering butterflies and meandering moths, and entertained by the myriad fledglings flitting through trees and bushes, harassing their parents for food.

190609 Cosmeston wildflowers

I was wondering which of these delights might be today’s blog subject, when I spotted a bright yellow ‘something’ flying across the field in front of me. I quickly followed and, luckily, it settled on the ground so I was able to get photos. It was a Clouded yellow, a butterfly I’ve only seen half a dozen times before, a migrant to Britain which may well have been blown in by yesterday’s wild weather. Blog sorted: ‘On the wings of the storm II’, I thought, and continued my walk.

190609 Clouded yellow

Then, just as I was nearing the top of the east paddock and about to head homewards, I made another chance discovery, a cracking dragonfly, a Black-tailed skimmer, another creature that I don’t see all that often. So, being spoilt for choice today, I thought I would share that with you as well.

190609 Black-tailed skimmer

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About me

sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

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