Dragons
Here be dragons!!
Plus a few damsels...
Emperor Dragonfly female
The intention in this posting is to do something a little different: bring together photos of the different species of dragonflies and damselflies that I have photographed.
If any are misidentified I hope any reader who spots such errors will let me know. Let's see what we've got to show you...
Above: female emperor dragonfly ovipositing at North Cave Wetlands YWT - with damselflies in attendance!
I'm going to start with the damselflies. Of the 17 species regularly seen in Britain I have photographed 5: azure; common blue; blue-tailed; red-eyed and emerald.
Azure damselfly
My identification tip: a secondary, truncated stripe on the side of the thorax.
Azure Damselfly
Azure Damselfly
Azure Damselfly female
Azure damselflies
Common blue damselfly
My identification tip: no secondary stripe on side of thorax!!
Common Blue Damselfly
Common Blue Damselflies
A damsel in distress...
Blue Damselfly being eaten by spider
Common Blue Damselfly
Immature
Damselfly immature
Common Blue Damselfly
Damselfly
Blue-tailed damselfly
My identification tip: penultimate segment blue: remainder of main body black including final segment
Blue-tailed Damselfly
Blue-tailed Damselfly
Red-eyed damselfly
My identification tip: red eyes!! Although my only current photo shows a female with rather more brownish eyes!
Red-eyed Damselfly
Emerald damselfly
My identification tip: green main body. Rests with wings outstretched unlike all the previous damsels
Emerald Damselfly
Emerald Damselflies
Emerald Damselfly
The dragonflies
Of 23 resident species I have only photographed 6 - so some way to go yet!
Common darter
My identification tips: body not waisted towards the middle as in ruddy darter. Common darter has yellow striped legs.
Common Darter
Common Darter
Common Darter female
Common Darter
Common Darter?
Ruddy darter
My identification tip: 'waisted' main body; all black legs. Red coloration variable - often similar to some common darters.
Ruddy Darter
Ruddy Darter
Ruddy Darter
Ruddy Darter
Emperor dragonfly
My identification tip: size; green-sided thorax; black dorsal stripe
Emperor Dragonfly
Emperor Dragonfly
Emperor Dragonfly
Four-spotted chaser
My identification tip: yellow spots along tapering abdomen; middle spot on each wing.
Four-spotted Chaser
Four-spotted Chasers
Four-spotted Chaser
Four-spotted Chaser
Four-spotted Chaser
Migrant hawker
Migrant Hawker
Migrant Hawker
Migrant Hawker
Brown hawker
My identification tip: amber wings; brown body. Unmistakable?!
Currently my favourite dragonfly [emerald being my favourite damsel] - I hope you like these images.
Brown Hawker
Brown Hawker
Brown Hawker
Flight shots are not impossible but a decent image is often trawled from among many failures! Here's a few of my efforts...
Emperor
Dragonfly sp.
Four-spotted chaser ovipositing as it hovered.
Dragonfly sp
All four-spotted chasers. I really like the first of these. Like a little combat fighter plane on a sortie!
Dragonfly sp
Dragonfly sp
Dragonfly sp
Where?
The brown hawker was at Heysham in Lancashire, in the little reserve by the nuclear power station. The migrant hawkers were at Blacktoft Sands RSPB, East Yorkshire. The emerald damselflies were at Saltholme RSPB, Middlesbrough. Apart from that nearly all the others as far as I recall were taken where I take lots of my insect photos at North Cave Wetlands YWT. Lenses: for the dragonflies often my Canon 400mm DO; for the damselflies my 100mm Canon macro L-series lens.