Oooh it’s dragonfly time again… This four spot chaser must have emerged from the wildlife pond near Balebarn Eco Lodge overnight. It wasn’t until we looked closely at the image that we spotted the shed larval ‘skin’ just to the left of the dragonfly – almost peeping around the grass.
Interestingly, the dragonfly was a good few metres from the pond. That’s quite a determined crawl. So when it finally took off after being photographed, it really was on its maiden flight. Amazing! Four spot chasers are territorial, so before long we should be finding them taking up positions around the pond – like last year.
There are a few azure damselflies around too (also pictured), but the males haven’t got their full vibrant blue colours yet. The immature damselflies can already be seen well away from the pond, including in the field in front of Wheatland Farm’s chalet-style lodges.
So that’s 3 species of dragonfly / damselfly so far in 2019, the large red damselfly, the four spot chaser and the azure damselfly. We’re looking forward to lots more!