20 Tuesday Jul 2021
Tags
Black-tailed skimmer, British dragonflies, Broad-bodied Chaser, dragonfly, Emperor, Southern hawker
Our local dragonflies seem to relish this hot summer weather we’ve been experiencing, but they are so speedy and flighty I find them quite difficult to photograph. Fortunately, these few were more co-operative …
Black-tailed skimmer
Emperor
Broad-bodied chaser
Southern hawker
22 Saturday Aug 2020
Though Common darters are now, well, common around my local haunts, I’ve seen very few of the larger dragonflies this year, perhaps because last year’s extremely dry summer caused many local ponds to dry up completely. These are two recent finds …
This Southern hawker (Aeshna cyanea) was patrolling a section of a local bridle way/cycle path/walking track called Mile Road and, though I walk this lane quite often, I only saw the dragonfly once. Perhaps it decided the amount of horse/cycle/people traffic along the lane wasn’t conducive to good insect hunting.
I watched this Migrant hawker (Aeshna mixta) for several minutes on Thursday before it finally settled on a nearby tree (I often feel like my head is waving around like I’m a spectator at some kind of crazy tennis match when I’m watching dragonflies). The perch was a little high up for crisp photos but I was pleased to see this, my first Migrant hawker of the year.
04 Wednesday Sep 2019
Posted in 365DaysWildin2019, insects, nature
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.
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.
09 Wednesday Aug 2017
Tags
Aeshna cyanea, Aeshna mixta, Aeshnidae, Anax imperator, British dragonflies, dragonflies, dragonfly, Emperor dragonfly, Migrant hawker, Southern hawker
The Aeshnidae are one of the five families of dragonflies to be found in Britain, and the family is made up of twelve Emperors and Hawkers. In the past week I have been privileged to see three members of the family during my local walks.
The Southern hawker (Aeshna cyanea) (above left) is relatively common in Wales. In Aderyn, the national biodiversity recording database, there are 3312 records of Southern Hawker sightings and these are spread across 225 of the 275 10-kilometre grid squares that divide up Wales.
If the recorded numbers are anything to go by, the Migrant hawker (Aeshna mixta) (above right) is half as common as the Southern, with 1662 records in 143 grid squares, and its coverage across Wales is more spasmodic. This was only my second sighting of this slightly smaller Hawker but then I have only been living in Wales two years so my personal statistics aren’t really relevant.
This last creature is the most recorded of the Aeshnidae, with 4098 records in 221 of Wales’s grid squares, but, rather than reflecting how common it is, that may be because it’s one of the easiest dragonflies to identify because it’s the biggest. This is the Emperor (Anax imperator). I often get buzzed by these stunning creatures hawking over fields of wildflowers when I’m out walking – and they sound like a small helicopter approaching! – but I rarely get lucky enough to see them perched so I was particularly chuffed to get this photo.
24 Monday Jul 2017
Tags
British butterflies, British dragonflies, Buddleia, Buddleja davidii, butterflies, Butterfly bush, Comma, dragonfly, Penarth Rail Trail, Red Admiral, Southern hawker
Buddleja davidii is not called the Butterfly bush for nothing.
Running through the town where I live there’s a rail trail – the path of a former railway line that was closed to rail traffic back in the 60s and is now a wonderful walking and cycling trail, lined with trees, shrubs and wildflowers. At one point along the trail, there’s a group of several Buddleja bushes that have now reached small tree height and are currently covered in their gorgeous lilacy purplish flowers. When I walked past today, they were alive with butterflies: I counted at least nine Red admirals, three Commas, two Speckled woods and a selection of Whites.
An added bonus was a Southern hawker dragonfly that was also patrolling the area. Just brilliant!
20 Saturday Aug 2016
A few days ago I posted a photo of a Southern hawker dragonfly on the UK Dragonflies & Damselflies page on Facebook, just to be sure of my identification of this beautiful creature.
Julie Horner was one of the people who liked my photo and she also commented, asking my permission to paint the dragonfly. I said yes, if she would give me permission to share her painting here on the blog. A deal was struck and I emailed Julie the images I shared on my Southern Hawker blog post last week.
Yesterday, Julie completed the painting and I am really delighted to be able to share her work with you. I love how she has simplified the subject matter – the iris is the perfect flower for the dragonfly to perch on, I think, and I also admire how well she has captured the detail in the wings. I’m sure you’ll agree that Julie is a really talented artist and I’m thrilled at what this impromptu collaboration has produced. You can check out more of Julie’s gorgeous paintings on her Facebook page, Horner Art Studio, and on her Etsy page.
15 Monday Aug 2016
Although I’d seen a Southern hawker dragonfly (Aeshna cyanea) once before, I hadn’t managed to get any good photos until I spotted this little beauty while on an outing to Lewes in East Sussex during last week’s holiday. Though the spot where she settled meant she was slightly obscured by vegetation, she very obligingly stayed put while I got several shots.
At around 70mm (2¾ inches) long, Southern hawkers are reasonably large creatures, and my research tells me they can be very inquisitive, sometimes flying right up to the people watching them to check them out. I’ve yet to see a male but imagine them to be rather handsome as they have vivid blue and green colouring with similar dark patterning to the female.
Neither of the Southern hawkers I’ve seen was near water and this is quite common, apparently. Though they need well-vegetated ponds in which to lay their eggs, they can often be seen hawking for food along tree-lined paths and woodland rides. These dragonflies are common in southern parts of England and Wales, hence the name Southern hawker.
earthstar 
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