I had most of the day out yesterday (29th May) starting early at 7am at Oare Marshes where the plan was to see whether I could find any Scarce Emerald exuviae for my collection. Whilst I have 2 in my collection already gifted to me, I really wanted to find my own. I arrived in good time and settled in at the side of the waters edge and slowly started scanning the tall grasses and reeds. After a while I found one and was pretty chuffed with this but in the next hour, I found c8 Scarce Emerald Damselfly exuviae. I also saw a few Scarce Emerald Damselfly in the reeds resting. I then called into Oare Gunpowder works for the first time to see whether I could find any Beautiful Demoiselle which have been seen here in small numbers in recent years. Despite not the best of weather, I failed to find any but did see a few Large Red and Azure Damselfly and 1 female Banded Demoiselle. It looks good here and I can well imagine Downy Emerald and Lesser Emperor spreading here. I shall return. Next it was over to Westbere Lakes around midday where I spent an amazing 4 hours walking around the site in pretty good weather. This really is a superb place for dragonflies and damselflies and I cannot recommend it enough if you want to see a good range of species and get a few photos. At times, I honestly didn't know where to look or point the camera. I managed to see c37 Scarce Chaser, 15 Norfolk Hawker, c10 Hairy Dragonfly, c400 Banded Demoiselle, 1 Four spotted Chaser, 1 Broad bodied Chaser as well as hundreds of Variable, Azure and Blue tailed Damselfly and a few Red eyed and Common Blue Damselfly. It really was a feast for the eyes. As you can imagine, I spent quite some time taking a number of very pleasing images depicting these amazing insects. With another week off yet, I am hopeful of a few more visit around Kent weather permitting to see what else can be found and photographed. As if my day couldn't get any better, I received a message later in the day from Steve in Whitstable that a male Stag Beetle had just flown into his garden. I duly made the short drive and was able to see this stunning insect up close and take a few photos. After I left, another male turned up. An excellent day of odonata and a thrilling end with the Stag Beetle.
400 Banded Demoiselle Marc! what a spectacular sight that must have been, I'm supposing this is a peak count for you? Waiting to see my first Stag Beetle, along with the rest of your haul of dragons, though I understand a Norfolk Hawker came within about 20 miles of me last year.
ReplyDeleteRegards....Pete.
Many thanks Pete. It was certainly a sight. The river was alive with them. If I had continued I would have no doubt seen a lot more. As for the Norfolk Hawkers they are pushing north so give them a few years and they may well become more regular where you are. Take care.
DeleteBeautiful pictures as usual Marc, well done,
ReplyDeleteMike.