Dragonfly Days ~ Southern Hawker

Butterfly numbers are said to be down, but it seems to me that this has not been a brilliant summer for Dragonflies or Damselflies either. We were delighted to see our first Southern Hawker on Dunwich Heath last week. 

The close-up below shows the characteristic yellow triangle at S2.

Carlton Marshes Nature Reserve

We spent much of Bank Holiday Monday here at Carlton Marshes, a nature reserve in the care of the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. The small bird (is it perhaps a Whitethroat?) was singing from the highest point of the willow as we arrived.

The Carlton Marshes reserve comprises fen, meadow and waterway. The tranquil views always remind me of a Cuyp landscape - and, of course, the Netherlands are not far away!

 

The bushes and trees were alive with birdsong. Summer migrants continue to arrive - though I have yet to see a Swift.

This small iridescent beetle attracted my attention. I assumed at first that it was a Dock Beetle, but with its marked triangular scutellum behind the pronotum and between the forewing bases, I am not so sure. It was very small (the size of an average 7-spot Ladybird). I don't believe it was a rare Rose Chafer Beetle, (the size of a small fingernail), though I was interested to discover that these beetles had been recorded in Suffolk in the last five years.

The sun came out intermittently, encouraging insects to show their faces. I think the creature below is a Common Cranefly.

We were thrilled to find our first Damselfly of 2014, which you can see in the photo below. I have not been able to identify it with any certainty yet, but its opaque grey-blue eyes must surely provide a clue.

We also saw our first Dragonflies of the year in the form of a couple of Hairy Dragonflies, members of the Hawker family, who were too quick for my camera.

The marshy areas were alive with butterflies. Most were Orange-tips, but this seems to be a Green-veined White.

Up until last Monday the only caterpillars I had seen this year may well have been from Brown-tail Moths since they were in tents on the Blackthorn bushes we passed on our way back from Stansted Airport some weeks ago. As you can see from the photo below, that situation has now been rectified ...

I seem to be drawn to red and black insects, but this fine specimen below is (to state the obvious) not a Ladybird. It is a Red-and-Black Froghopper, one of the largest homopterans in the UK.

I see I spotted one of these a year ago at Carlton Marshes.

This time we saw three.

And finally, our eyes alerted on another red and black insect lurking in the verge - a 2-spot Ladybird, and my first of 2014. It seemed very small. I shall be recording it on the UK Ladybird Survey.

Broadland ~ Wildlife Cruise on Horsey Mere

The sun shone brightly on Bank Holiday Monday. We made a prompt start and were soon arriving at Horsey on the Norfolk Broads. We booked in on a wildlife cruise aboard the Lady Ann, and it was not long before we were setting off across the wide expanse of Horsey Mere. The water is practically free of the large Broads cruisers, due to the height of the bridge at nearby Potter Heigham. As we sailed towards the little island of reeds in the photo above, I kept feeling as though we had stepped out of the pages of Arthur Ransome's Coot Club!

We embarked on a voyage of discovery up a small dyke. It was very narrow and shallow, and provided good wildlife opportunities. A Marsh Harrier quartered the adjoining meadows from above. 

As I looked around, the derelict vision of Brograve drainage mill came into view.

The photo above was lightened by Photoshop, but I actually think ...

... that this silhouetted view is more evocative.

The photo above shows a trio of Sandpipers, skimming up the dyke.

This is an enlarged shot of them. Our guide told us to keep an eye out for a Kingfisher, and there on cue - astonishingly - was the said bird. It did a quick fly-past and was gone, but I saw the brown plumage turn in a flash to its familiar iridescent sheen of turquoise and amber as it flew out of the shadow. Sadly there was no time even to contemplate a photograph.

So what else did we see? Well, Peacock, Large White and Small Tortoiseshell butterflies in profusion. David caught sight of a Water Vole, but it eluded me. There were also a number of dragonflies, particularly Common Darters and Brown Hawkers.

All too soon it was time to head back towards the staithe. You can see the 5-storey Horsey Windpump in the photo below. It is in the care of the National Trust.

You can read about more about it here.

One of the special things about this wildlife cruise was that we were sharing the boat with a nest of near fledgling Swallows. The parent bird zoomed off at regular intervals, and returned with food for the young. It seemed quite extraordinary to me that the birds appeared to be unperturbed by the moving nature of their temporary home. Shades of the dove on Noah's ark, perhaps ...

So here we are, making our way up the staithe ...

... towards the windpump.

There were lots of 7-spot ladybirds along the towpath. You can see some of them in the photo above. You can also see a larva ...

... which (alas) may well be a Harlequin.

This is one of the female Common Darters. Another landed on the brim of David's hat on a couple of occasions!

Horsey Mere ~ what a great place for wildlife of all kinds!

Home Patch (30): Southern Hawker

© David Gill 2012

I believe this dragonfly is a Southern Hawker. It was resting in the garden on 15 September 2012. It is another species to add to our list of 'home patch' flora and fauna.  

A Flight of Dragonflies

I seem to have an accumulation of dragonfly photos, so here are a few to add a splash of colour to a grey day ... though the sun has now come out. Enjoy! 

Migrant Hawker ... in our Suffolk garden

As above

... the Migrant Hawker again!

First shot at a fidgety Emperor - do they ever stand still?

Male Black-tailed Skimmer (Minsmere)

Pretty sure this is another (rather bedraggled) Emperor.

A Darter - ?Ruddy Darter

?A female Common Darter

ditto

Could this be a Red-veined Darter?

An old female Darter, not sure which kind of Darter though

ditto

Male ?Ruddy Darter ...

... head on!

Emperor, Britain's largest dragonfly ... these hardly ever stop to rest!

Another male Common Darter, I'm guessing

Male Ruddy Darter ... note the 'twine'

... possibly the female Ruddy Darter

I'm very much a novice at identifying these Odonata, so please correct me if you can! These dragonflies were spotted at Minsmere and Helmingham in Suffolk and at How Hill, Hickling and Titchwell in Norfolk during the summer.

Identification aids consulted ...

• Britain's Dragonflies by Dave Smallshire & Andy Swash 

•  The Little Guide to the Dragonflies and Damselflies of Minsmere Nature Reserve by Paul Green (2011)

• A guide to the dragonflies and damselflies of Britain (Aids to identification in difficult groups of animals and plants) by S.J. Brooks [Card Book]

Odonata (11): Minsmere - Brown Hawker

Brown Hawker - I think!

My thanks to David for his photos above of this splendid dragonfly, which alighted in a gorse bush during our visit to Minsmere on 21 July.

My close-up (but shaky as I was trying to keep clear of the gorse spikes!)