Wonderful Willows

I was out birding quite early this morning at Nethergong and as it was quite warm, I stopped off at a few points to check for any Willow Emerald Damselflies. As I walked next to the stream, the odd one was seen flying out of cover into the grasses. Further along in a sheltered warm area, there were c20 Willow Emerald Damselfly resting up and looking pretty stunning in the early morning sunshine. I only had the Canon f4 300mm lens with me so set about getting a few photos from as near as I could get. It was just a pleasant morning watching them flying out from cover to check each other out, normally to return to the same perch they had come from. I picked up on one Willow Emerald Damselfly flying quite high and kept it in the binoculars until I lost it to view. I must have been a few hundred feet up when I lost it but just goes to show how this species can move easily like it has around the country to new areas. I also saw 3 Norfolk Hawker, 1 Emerald Damselfly (their numbers have sadly plummeted in the past few years) 1 Small Red eyed Damselfly and a few Azure and Blue tailed Damselfly. The summer holidays begin from Wednesday next week so hopefully weather permitting, I will be able to get out a bit more often to see what is about and fingers crossed, a photo or two to share. 

Willow Emerald Damselfly (Chalcolestes viridis) - male

Willow Emerald Damselfly (Chalcolestes viridis) - female