With my eldest daughter photographing an immature Red veined Darter on Friday morning on her mobile phone about 50 yards from home, I wondered if anymore had emerged from a private site nearby so I planned to visit the site Saturday to have a good look around. Saturday dawned and it was very foggy but the forecast suggested by mod morning the fog would lift to a beautiful sunny day. With this in mind I decided to arrive about 11am where it was still a little foggy but starting to clear. I hoped a good wander around might reveal a few dragonflies before they warmed up and took flight for the day. As I walked through the long grass and nearby reed edges, I disturbed the odd Common Darter but not long after, a rather yellow Darter appeared from if front of me and landed a few metres away. A quick scan revealed a pristine immature male Red veined Darter. I must confess that although the brilliant males are superb, I personally like them better in their immature stage, the blue underside to the eyes standing out really well. For once the conditions played in my favour and I spent the next 30 minutes or so taking a number of images of the darter as it happily posed for me.
Red veined Darter (immature male)
Eventually the sun broke through and he was off so I continued my walk on specifically looking for more of this species. In the next 2 hours I managed to find a total of 4 Red veined Darters, all seemingly really fresh and in superb conditions. They were a bit more wary now but with a bit of field craft, I was able to grab a few more pleasing images to add to my collection.
Red veined Darter (immature male)
I also noted quite a few Migrant Hawker, Common Darter and 1 Common Blue Damselfly. I really didn't think I would stand a chance of seeing again this year but it just goes to show, if you have a good look around, you never know. I suppose the biggest thanks goes to my daughter Jasmine, who without finding the individual on Friday, I probably would have not put so much effort in to look for them. Whilst I am often happy with most of my shots I publish, a few of these I am really pleased with and I think are some of my best shots I have of this species, and in the immature stage as well which is a real bonus. I made another trip back this morning and despite a two hour search, I failed to find any Red veined Darters in warm sunshine. Was I just unlucky or had they already began their journey back south? Whatever the reason, its been a real privilege to be able to see and photograph what is still a very scarce national dragonfly close to where I live. Hopefully the weather will be kind next weekend and I will be able to get back out to enjoy what is still on the wing.
Red veined Darter (immature male)
I agree with what you say Marc, these are superb little Dragons, the blue really does compliment the rest of their markings. That first shot is 11 out of 10 mate LoL . Nice work :-)
ReplyDeleteI reckon they know the weather is on the change and have headed south for better conditions ;-)
Thanks Warren. Really pleased with this set and makes it all worthwhile to get shots like this.
DeleteVery nice. My local site was flooded out for a while. I might have to have another look now if the weather is not too bad!! I wasn't expecting to see any immature ones now.
ReplyDeleteIf it wasn't for my daughters sighting, then I probably would not have given it such a try. I get the feeling they disperse quite quickly.
DeleteThese look so different than most of the other dragons you have shown us over that last few months, with softer, less metallic colors. Very beautiful creatures and your photos definitely do them justice!
ReplyDeleteMany thanks Wilma. I think they look stunning at this immature stage. Those eyes stand out really well in the field. When they mature up the males will be bright red in colour.
DeleteIt's good to have a young pair of eyes around,may be your daughter will turn out to be a great photography like her dad.
ReplyDeleteJohn.
You never know but I will be happy if she keeps on finding interesting stuff for me to look at and photograph.
DeleteBrilliant Red-veined Darter images, the greatest ever Marc.
ReplyDeleteThanks Bob, certainly pleased to find them as thought that was probably the season nearly over. Maybe one more push if the weather is nice over the weekend.
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