Dragons and Damsels
The weather was just right for our Dragonfly and Damselfly walk this afternoon. Plover's Pool is an excellent place to just stop and stand and stare and be amazed at their antics, as they hawk across the water.
Keith and June, supported by Tony, shared their knowledge as well as catching some of these fantastic insects, although it must be said that probably the dragons, particularly, out smarted those with nets. Some were caught and expertly handled so that everyone could see the detail on the dragons.
This one was a Black-tailed Skimmer. Unfortunately they do not always sit in the best places for photographs to be taken, so apologies for the thistle. I will let it off as it is yet another new species for the reserve.
In the morning Keith and June had also recorded Golden-ringed Dragonfly and Keith was able to take this beautiful photo. Thank you.
We also saw Broad-bodied Chasers along with Emerald, Common and Azure Damselflies. Whilst watching all of these beautiful insects I was wondering why Lark and Taurus were not being curious. I peered around the trees but no ponies. I was beginning to wonder if they had been moved.
As Anne, Barry and I headed to Spigot Mere to check on the Pillwort I realised that Lark and Taurus were enjoying standing on the island in the middle of Spigot Mere.
A phone call to Gerry confirmed that they should not be there. Out came our own 'horse whisperer', Sandra. Armed with apples and carrots she lead them back to Plover's Pool where they should be. Thank you very much! A reminder please to close all the gates.
Whilst looking for dragonflies and damselflies we also noted the butterflies and the list included Brimstone, Dark Green Fritillary, Small Copper, Common Blue and the butterfly making all the headlines, Painted Lady.
Everyone enjoyed the walk around the reserve hunting for the dragons and damsels and seeing so many other species. Thank you to Keith and June for leading this walk for us.
As an extra piece of information our Pillwort is growing really well in Plover's Pool and Spigot Mere. Anne and Barry took GPS readings and recorded the approximate size of each area. We will watch these carefully over the next few weeks and hope that they continue to thrive. Thanks again to Anne and Dave for their valuable work supporting us with this rare fern.