More Pond Life

I try and post once a week(ish) and usually have a topic in mind.  Now, if I get to go out unexpectedly and get some images I’m really pleased with a curved ball is tossed in my direction.  What to do?  As you lovely people have had an overdose of butterfly shots just lately I will stick to the original plan, especially as things have happened in the last few days.  Intrigued?  Carry on reading.

Those of you who have been with me for a while will know when we moved home late last year we ‘inherited’ a garden pond, no fish this is just for wildlife.  It needed a bit of sorting out and I added a lot of plants.  Now the work is starting to bear fruit.

Large Red Damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula)

As well as the butterflies, during the warm months (🤣🤣😂) I am fascinated by dragonflies.  Our spring here in Norfolk, as well as most of the UK, just hasn’t got going.  The dragons and damsels (odonata) are at least three weeks late.  For spring butterflies to suffer poor weather will mean next year the numbers will crash.  The dragons can delay emergence under water until things are better, sometimes up to a year.  However late last week we had a visit from the first Large Red Damselfly.

Helophilus pendulus also known as the Footballer Hoverfly due to it’s stripey thorax supposedly resembling a soccer shirt, yeah ok

Bogbean (Menyanthes trifoliata). Lovely to see one of my plant introductions in flower and such a beautiful flower it is

The exciting events started this week with the first Large Red Damselfly emerging.  I noticed the very pale damsel hanging from an old Iris stem.  At this stage they are known as teneral, it takes a day or so to attain full colour.

Morning reflection

Monday morning it was cool and grey.  I went for my daily look at the pond and to say “Hi” to the newts (yes, I’m loosing it).  There hanging from an Iris a freshly emerged Broad-bodied Chaser (Libellula depressa)!  I was ecstatic.  Rushed indoors to get the camera and Mrs H so I could record the event.

The dragonfly was in an awkward spot to photograph. An hour earlier and I would have witnessed the actual emergence.  The little white threads coming from the exuvia are the breathing tubes

The sun came through early afternoon. This allowed the dragon to open her wings into the normal position and inflate them. An hour later she had taken her first flight. The female can be told by the shape of the anal appendages, these are the two tiny points on the tip of the abdomen. Female Broad-bodied Chasers will become a bright gold colour whilst males will produce a substance called pruinescence which turns them blue