Just a brief diary note to say that, very nearly two weeks after Duck End NR (apparently always Bedfordshire’s first), I today found six freshly emerged Large Red Damsels (Pyrrhosoma nymphula) at my local Sandhouse Lane NR.
My first encounter with them at Sandhouse last year was May 12th but then, I had been languishing in Spain in early May – and much warmer it had been, too.
Now back and settled after returning from a wet week in the Lake District, where the start of the Odo season in Bedfordshire eluded me, today I set out on my own first sorties.
My initial target was to check my own local patch, Sandhouse Lane NR, where I drew a blank. In short, it seemed as quiet as a graveyard. Time to look elsewhere.
Trying to think of small ponds that might warm up sooner than others (thinking this might encourage earlier emergence), I headed for Eversholt and its small Millennium Pond. I drew another blank.
I decided to head a little further afield and set off for Flitton Moor but, part way over there and realising that it is but a spit away from Duck End NR (where Bedfordshire’s first had been spotted), I couldn’t resist switching destinations in the hope of seeing my first little darlings of the new season. There are four ponds at Duck End, one of which seemed to be roped off (looked like boardwalk problems). The first two of the remaining three ponds yielded nothing. I was a little surprised at the second because it gets good sun, when sun is available. I progressed to the third and last pond. Initially I fond nothing and started chasing some hoverflies. In doing so I disturbed my eagerly sought quarry and here the fine male specimen is.
The morning was warming a little and I began disturbing others around the edge of this last pond. Final tally: 14 individuals. Once again, I’d broken my duck at Duck End.
Just a quickie to note that today a couple of friends from the BNHS [Bedfordshire Natural History Society] snagged photographic evidence that our year’s first Large Red Damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula) had emerged at Duck End NR near Maulden. And there I was, languishing in a good deal of cold rain and when it wasn’t raining it was very grey. Darn it, I missed it! Duck End is usually our kick-off site, though I have a suspicion that’s because it gets watched so closely.
This is about three weeks earlier than kick-off, 2013.
Now that I’m back from the cold, wet Lake District, if it ever warms up enough, I’ll be out looking.
My first reasonably serious attempt at finding dragonflies in Spain was in August this year, when we drove to Jalón to help a friend clebrate his birthday in early August and to take in something of the summer heat and fiestas. I’d bumped into a few specimens in a later spring trip but this August had been my first brush with the height of the Odo season in Spain.
Having been invited to serve as house-and-dog-sitters once more, we arrived back at Jalón on December 19th for the seasonal festivities, a welcome escape from Christmas at home.
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Jalón: 22-23 Dec, 2013
I certainly didn’t arrive in Spain this late in the year expecting to see any Odos but, on December 22nd and 23rd with the sun shining on rock pools in the local Jalón river, I was pleasantly surprised to see a handful of darters, including some late season ovipositing. On closer inspection of my photographic evidence, they proved to be:
Since colleagues had been spotting Common Darters active in Hampshire in early December this year, I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised by their being active this late this much further south, but I was – pleasantly so, of course.
This may be a report of a single species in a single location but, since it represents my latest ever date for Odos in Europe, I though it was definitely worth an honorable mention.
Most interesting, for me, anyway, was the fact that I had not spotted any Common Darters at this location in August. So, not only was tbhis a new species for this location but I’d have thought they would have been active in August, too. Curious.
Having fallen in love with Norfolk once again after an absence of more than 20 years, and my boss having run off back to Italy for a third week this year, this time in the company of her mother, I decided to return to Norfolk, just me and our caravan, Billy. I chose Norfolk not specifically for Odos – the Norfolk Hawkers (Aeshna isoceles), after all, were long gone – but more because it appeared to be the part of the country that would enjoy the best chance of settled weather during my visit.
The weather did turn out to be mostly sunny. Indeed, I enjoyed five days of mainly sunshine which was more than I could say for my Italian adventurers. Of course, with dry sunny conditions, I couldn’t resist seeing what dragonflies I could find but this late in the season I was really only ever expecting Common Darters (Sympetrum striolatum) and Migrant Hawkers (Aeshna mixta).
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I had a very pleasant late afternoon walk beside the River Ant from Ludham Bridge and ended up at the staithe on the river front just outside the How Hill estate.
Having enjoyed the peace and solitude of Alderfen NR so much back in June, I just had to return and see who was around. Once again, it was just me and the Odos: more Common Darters (Sympetrum striolatum) than I could count and several Migrant Hawkers (Aeshna mixta). This place really is a delight.
Johnson Street Campsite: 29 Sep 2013
I’d spotted a few individuals on the campsite back in June but, since they were less than a handful, I didn’t map them. Once again, I was in the company of Odos which added the the total species count so now I’ve included it.
Winterton Dunes NNR: 29 Sep 2013
Wnterton Dunes has a reputation for rare wildlife, including Natterjack Toads, which we set of to see and failed to find during our June visit. In fact, we failed to find the correct area of the dunes themselves. In the Odonata line, my still-to-be-seen Small Bluetail/Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly (Ischnura pumilio) has apparently also been reported there. Of course, it was much too late in the year for that but I thought I’d make another visit anyway, just to try and find the correct location once and for all. I’m still not entirely sure I did, largely because my suspect pond had largely dried out. My trudge through the sandy dunes did disturb a few Common Darters (Sympetrum striolatum), though.
My return visit to Upton Broad and Marshes was curtailed by too many unpleasant clouds rolling in. Still, it added the now familiar two species to my location list.
A trip to Italy for the first half of September was primarily a walking holiday. However, there were a few days off to get a dose of culture in various cities. I don’t really do city culture but, looking at a map, I did spot a couple of water bodies that might have given me a little Odo interest. Time was very limited but I did find a few species in three locations.
Since I am not yet minded to make Italy a regular hunting ground, my Italy map and observations are likely to remain very limited. This may well be it. 😉
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For a city, Lucca is actually quite pleasant. It’s most impressive feature is undoubtedly its 4km wall, complete and in good repair, around which you can walk and/or cycle. Running just outside a considerable section of the wall is a small water course which I assumed to be some kind of drainage channel. It meanders, quite attractively, through a grassy surround. Here, we did find a couple of Odos. Of course, being on a walking holiday I was not correctly equipped to capture them well on pixels but we did our best with what photographic equipment we had.
Normally we really enjoy coastal walking but in the case of the very touristy coastal footpath that we encountered at the famous Cinque Terre, we’ll make an exception. Get us back to the sanity of the mountains and away from flip-flop clad sun-worshippers. My interest did increase when we spotted a dragonfly or two – hawkers of some kind – zooming about our starting village but I couldn’t identify them. Along the coastal path itself, however, we did spot a female Red-veined Darter (Sympetrum fonscolombii) and preserved it on pixels. At least I now knew this species to be happy at the coast and was no longer surprised to see it in such habitat.
This is the day I was dreading more than any other. Here I would be in a very large, bustling city, crawling with tourists and full of expensive shops, and me in the company of several women who regarded shopping as an Olympic sport. I studied the map again and found the Boboli Gardens which seemed to have a few water features which just might provide some respite. Unfortunately there was an entrance fee but I could stand no more and went in, accompanied by a couple of male companions with a similar allergy to shopping.
The first water feature, classical statues around a circular concrete pond with no vegetation whatsoever, proved utterly sterile and unsurprisingly fruitless. Oddly, at the second water feature, which looked equally sterile with not a hint of any vegetation at all, I spotted not one but two Black-tailed Skimmers flying and occasionally perching on the concrete side wall. I still cannot think why they were there but I’m very glad they were.
Other than a worrying warning light the shape of which resembled our engine block, we completed our 1200mls/1900kms road journey from Calais, over the Pyrenees and on to Jalón (near Calpe on the Costa Blanca) smoothly. It has to be said that driving to Spain is not particularly cost effective. The diesel alone costs about £500 and, on top of that, there’s the ferry (~£80) and recovery insurance (~£80), together with accommodation and meals (~£400) en route to take into account. The more rational way would be a low cost airline such as easyJet (~£300 the pair) plus a rental car to get independence of travel while at the Spanish end. I quite like long drives, though, and the journey was basically fun, despite a few traffic jams (Bordeaux was far and away the worst) and that worrying warning light.
The last 50kms or so driving down the autopista felt distressingly like coming home. Distressing because the house we were staying in belongs to someone else. 🙂 We’d been invited out to help friend Chris celebrate his birthday and to get a flavour of the Spanish fiestas but, this being our first visit to Spain in the height of summer, I was hoping for some decent Odo action.
I tried to do some research before leaving but it seemed rather difficult to get any detailed information about very many Odo sites. Previously, I’d had difficulty identifying sites myself using maps and good ol’ Google Earth so perhaps there really is a paucity of them. Alternatively and, I suspect, more likely, Spain is a rather under recorded country when it comes to Odonata. This was certainly the opinion expressed by a contact at UKDragonflies who visits Spain both regularly and frequently. Certainly, there aren’t many detailed dragonfly websites available. I did get one pointer to the area from one David Chelmick at Macromia Scientific which proved useful, especially so because I found a new (for me) species, though not the species that David had mentioned I might find.
Actually, we found two new species but one was not acting on information received.
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Las Salinas, Calpe: 7 Aug, 2013
Back in May, I had been a little surprised to find a pair of Red-veined Darters (Sympetrum fonscolombii) at this salt water lagoon. I was no longer surprised since I’d since learned that S. fonscolombii is often associated with coastal regions. I was keen to return to see firstly if this had been a fluke and secondly if anything else might be present. The answer to the first question was no, my May sighting was no fluke; now the side of the lagoon was playing home to many RVDs of both sexes. The answer to the second question was also no, I saw no other species.
Riu Xaló-Gorgos, Jalón: 6/8 Aug, 2013
[BTW: Xaló is Valencianan for Jalón.]
The river that flows through Jalón is a little confusing in that there is usually water in the river bed at Jalón and much further downstream at Xavier but in between, round about Lliber, the river bed remains confusingly dry. The river, I’m told, disappears underground. Weird! Where there is usually water, I’d been a little surprised not to find any evidence of dragonflies back in May. This time I looked harder and in more places and found a decent haul including, most notably, a new species to me, the Epaulet Skimmer (Orthetrum chrysostigma). New species are always a thrill but also a little confusing so I verified my id with a contact familiar with Spanish dragonflies. Another species I was delighted to see here, particularly given the lighting conditions for photography, was the Violet Dropwing/Violet-marked Darter (Trithemis annulata).
Ischnura elegans (Common Bluetail/Blue-tailed Damselfly) 1Riu Xaló-Gorgos, Lliber: 9 Aug, 2013
Though the riverbed of the Xaló-Gorgos seems utterly dry both above and below Lliber, we did wander and found a few sizable pools of water. Unfortunately, the sizable pools of water outnumbered the dragonflies considerably, there being only one species that I spotted.
Pego-Oliva Marsh Nature Reserve: 10 Aug, 2013
One of my attempts at research prior to the trip was to contact a birder with the Jalón U3A. Though he did not have any specific dragonfly sites knowledge, he did point me at the Parque Natural de Marjal de Pego-Oliva, a mixture of marshes and rice paddies. I had actually tried it before but failed to find somewhere that I was happy to park for fear of infringing the law. My contact straightened me out and we tried again with much more success.
This was quite an interesting find for us, not to mention quite an interesting drive. To get up to La Vall d’Ebo we drove up over the coastal range of hills/mountains round some classic hairpin bends. Our idea was to have a tapas lunch at a restaurant that had been recommended but there’s also a small river running beside the village. Our approach took us over a river bridge but the river’s bed looked bone dry, rather like the river at Lliber. However, we did find decent pools of water and a good haul of dragonflies. The star turn was undoubtedly one particularly cooperative make Southern Skimmer (Orthetrum brunneum).
I’m pretty sure we spotted a Lesser Emperor (Anax parthenope) flying about but it didn’t settle and I can’t be sure it wasn’t a Vagrant Emperor (Anax ephippiger) which has a similar blue saddle.
Aula Natura De La Marjal De Gandia
This was the reserve suggested to me by David Chelmick at Macromia Scientific. The site is apparently known for the Black Pennant (Selysiothemis nigra) which was the main reason for our visit but which, even though our timing looked good compared to its flight season, we did not find. However, the trip was very worthwhile because we did find a new species to add to our catalogue, the Long Skimmer (Orthetrum trinacria). What a happy bunny!
[1] – There is an Iberian Bluetail (Ischnura graellsii) whose recorded range theoretically overlaps here with the Common Bluetail (I. elegans) though here, the map shows it as something of an outpost. Separating these two painfully similar species requires either hand examination or a detailed photograph. My id of I. elegans is based upon my thinking I can see the upstanding edge of the pronotum on two of my suspects. It’s probably also more likely.
Here’s a spreadsheet of species by location:
Technorati Tags: travel,Spain,Jalon,nature,wildlife,odonata,dragonflies,damselflies,photography
August 2013 broke our mould in several respects. Firstly, we were straying away from home during the height of rugrat season. Secondly, we would be experiencing the height of summer in Spain, our ultimate destination, for the very first time. Thirdly, rather than flying, we were re-using a missed ferry booking and driving the 1200 mls/1900 kms to Jalón, taking three days to complete the journey.
As we would otherwise be missing out on France this year, we took a slightly circuitous route down to Spain enabling us to call in at Arçais in the Marais Poitevin to visit friend Mike. We stayed two nights in a very frugally priced gîte (€20 each including breakfast) run by a former mayor and, on our full day there with him, Mike led us on one of his favourite walks through the marsh.
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As if it were needed, this visit really did stress the importance of visiting ones favourite haunts, of which this is most certainly one, at different times of the year. In a location that we have previously visited quite frequently, we added three new species to our list for this location. Most exciting of these for me was the addition of White Featherleg (Platycnemis latipes), since this seems to be the north-westernmost limit of its range. Hitherto, I had not realized that it could be found this far north.
The following is what we spotted this time around, rather than our complete hit list for Arçais.
Swiftly on the heels of our trip to Shropshire in search of the White-faced Darters (Leucorrhinia dubia), came a trip to Norfolk in search of my second missing localized celebrity, the Norfolk Hawker/Green-eyed Hawker (Aeshna isoceles). The Norfolk Broads is the main area of interest when it comes to Norfolk Hawkers so, for our first week of a 2-week trip, I’d booked us into the Caravan Club site at Johnson Street near Ludham. We planned a second week in the west of Norfolk on the Camping and Caravanning Club site on the Sandringham estate.
The president of the BDS, Dr. Pam Taylor, is also the Norfolk recorder so, prior to making our trip, I emailed requesting assistance/suggestions and how very helpful she was. She was kind enough to provide me with maps and instructions as to finding some very precise locations. Her information constituted the great bulk of our activity in the Norfolk Broads area. Many thanks!
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Johnson Street campsite: 22-28 Jun, 2013
No sooner had we arrived in Norfolk and got ourselves installed on our campsite, but a teneral Norfolk Hawker buzzed into our pitch and eventually hung-up in the bushes right beside our caravan. I couldn’t believe my luck – they seem to have come looking for me. 🙂 Our VIP visitor remained there all day and, though it was in the shade and far from well lit, I managed to bring my camera to bear, assisted by monopod and flash gun. I was over the moon. Our caravan also attracted a sheltering Red-eyed Damselfly.
So, a short list but a list for the campsite nonetheless:
The two most widely known sites for chasing Norfolk Hawkers are the Norfolk Wildlife Trust’s Upton Fen and Marshes reserve together with the RSPB’s Strumpshaw Fen reserve. However, I got the impression that Dr. Taylor’s personal favourite spot was the lesser known Alderfen Broad reserve, also one belonging to the Norfolk Wildlife Trust. Having visited, I can quite understand why. Alderfen was wonderfully tranquil (we saw nobody else at all) and access was good, though the entrance to it is very much less than obvious, there being no signs that I could se on the narrow country lane leading to it.
In addition to the Norfolk Hawker, which we did find, it is also a good spot for the Variable Damselfly (Coenagrion pulchellum).
Here’s my hit list for Alderfen:
Ludham Bridge, River Ant: 25 Jun, 2013
Our campsite was a mere 100m/100yds or so from Ludham Bridge. As well as overnight moorings, beside the river Ant here are reeds so I couldn’t resist scouring these for Odos. In a small dyke beside the river, I was a little surprised to find Norfolk Hawkers. Perhaps this was the source of our teneral on the campsite?
Upton Broad and Marshes: 26 Jun, 2013
On to one of the two most widely known sites for chasing Norfolk Hawkers, Upton Broad and Marshes. Being more widely known, we didn’t have this reserve to ourselves but it was a very pleasant mixed habitat including turf ponds, boards walks and dykes. It was a dyke filled with water soldier that netted us a flight shot of a patrolling Norfolk Hawker, amongst other interests.
Here’s my hit list for Upton:
Ludham and Potter Heigham Marshes NNR: 26 Jun, 2013
Whilst out for a bike ride, for a change, we stumbled across Ludham and Potter Heigham Marshes. Before continuing our bike ride, we spent about 30 minutes watching a dyke at the corner of one field beside the track and were surprised to see a couple of Norfolk Hawkers start buzzing about. These guys may be localized (although they are now breeding in Cambridgeshire as well as Norfolk) but they certainly do not seem to be rare – locally abundant is the term I’d use. The Norfolk Hawkers were not alone:
Another trip that I’d brand as a great success. 🙂
My desire to get the cataract in my right eye fixed enforced a stay in the UK during May and June, so we had to forego a planned trip to France hunting orchids and Odos. Making the most of our being stuck was quite easy, though. There were two particular species, both localized and both with main flight times centred on June and early July, that I had yet to see, normally being out of the country at that time. The first of those was the White-faced Darter (Leucorrhinia dubia), whose most southerly breeding colony is to be found at Whixall Moss in Shropshire. I booked us into the Camping and Caravanning Club’s site at Ebury Hill, just north-east of Shrewsbury, in the hope of finding the little darlings.
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As luck would have it, a small flooded quarry on the grounds of the campsite itself proved to be the most productive habitat in terms of number of species. Best of all, I had to walk only 100yds/100m to enjoy it. The most exciting find here, which proved to be a new site for the species, was a Downy Emerald (Cordulia aenea). Fortunately, I had managed a photograph of Shropshire’s new celebrity to convince the Shropshire recorder that I hadn’t been dreaming. 🙂
Here’s my hit list for Ebury Hill, 6 damselflies and 1 dragonfly:
[Actually, I think I saw a Broad-bodied Chaser (Libellula depressa) whizz across the pond, too, but I wasn’t 100% certain.]
I confess that, during my wander round Whixall Moss, so intent was I on searching for my Holy Grail of the White-faced Darter, I quite forgot to compile an exhaustive list of other species encountered “on the moss”. [Note to self: must try harder next time.] Having got that out of the way, suffice to say that we did find the Whitefaced Darter and in quite good numbers, too.
With the aid of photographic records, here’s my list of species that I do have recorded, including a particularly neat Four-spotted Chaser rather photogenically positioned:
Tick off the first of my missing UK species. All in all, a very enjoyable and successful trip.