Her highness

Blue Emperor (Anax imperator)

Our pond was a hive of activity over the past month, with multiple species of damselfly and dragonfly buzzing over its surface, pairing up and egg-laying, or perching on sticks around its edges. One of our visitors was this female Blue Emperor (Anax imperator) which spent several weeks making regular forays to deposit her eggs under the Frogbit (Hydrocharis morsus-ranae) leaves. She's impressively large; at 7.8 cm (a little over 3 inches) long and with a wingspan of 10.5 cm (more than 4 inches), Blue Emperors are among Britain's biggest dragonflies. The species is named for the male, which is indeed primarily blue. The female, however, is gloriously green, except for that reddish-brown stripe running the length of her abdomen. They're found across much of Great Britain, with a range that's expanded considerably since the 1990s. They're still pretty rare in Scotland, where they only arrived in the early 2000s. They're primarily found on larger bodies of water, so we feel quite privileged that this female chose our little puddle.

Darter

Ruddy Darter (Sympetrum sanguineum)

Our pond continues to entice new visitors to the garden. Recent transients included this young male Ruddy Darter (Sympetrum sanguineum), which spent a half hour or so checking out various perches near the water. It looks a bit like the Red-veined Darter that made an even briefer appearance a few weeks ago, but with some readily apparent differences. For one thing, its stigmata (those blocks of colour near the end of its wings) are dark rather than pale, as are the veins on its wings. For another, its legs are completely black, lacking the yellow stripes shown by the Red-veined and Common (Sympetrum striolatum) darters. It has small patches of yellow at the base of its hindwings, and some dark blotches on the lower side of each abdomen segment, and its abdomen is slightly club-shaped at the tip. When he reaches full adulthood, he'll be bright red with dark brown eyes, like the one below, which showed up about a week after the youngster. Females are bright yellow, darkening somewhat as they age.

This is a common species across much of Europe east to Siberia, though missing from most of the Iberian Peninsula and the far north. In the UK, it is one of the commonest darter species in the southeast, and its range is spreading north and west. It particularly likes standing or slow-moving waterways that are well-vegetated, even in shady woodland areas and often when they're eutrophic (i.e. heavily nutriented). Our pond, which is becoming increasingly eutrophic despite our best efforts, sounds perfect for it. Ruddy Darters fly primarily from June through September, but can be seen as early as May and as late as November. We'll be keeping an eye out for more of them.

Chaser

Four-spotted Chaser (Libellula quadrimaculata) – immature male

Before we added the pond to the garden, most of the dragonflies we saw were fly-bys; we'd get quick views as they raked past over the flowerbeds in search of a meal before carrying on to somewhere else. Now, we regularly find them perched and resting, often on the various sticks and bamboo arches Mike has installed around the water's edge. This young male Four-spotted Chaser (Libellula quadrimaculata) spent a few days hanging around the garden late last month, and it (or another) has been seen sporadically since. Though similar in colouring to the female Broad-bodied Chaser (Libellula depressa), this one is much slimmer-bodied, and has distinctively a dark spot at the node halfway along the leading edge of each wing. It also has an amber patch at the base of each wing, while similar patches on the Broad-bodied Chaser's wings are black. As an adult, its body will darken to a deep brown. Females are somewhat broader-bodied, and gingery where this one is brown. Where his appendages (the claspers at the end of his abdomen, which he will use to hold onto a female during mating) are slightly splayed, hers would be straight or even slightly convergent. 

Like all dragonflies, the larvae of Four-spotted Chasers are aquatic, feeding on other insect larvae and small tadpoles. Still waters – like our pond – are preferred, particularly if they have plenty of vegetation. Adults feed mainly on midges, mosquitoes, and gnats, so we're happy they're around. This widespread species is common across the British Isles, as well as across temperate Eurasia and North America; it's actually the state insect of Alaska. Apparently, it used to undergo huge migrations in the past. It's typically most abundant in early summer, but flies from late April through September, so there's plenty of time to see more.

Surprise migrant

Red-veined Darter (Sympetrum fonscolombii)

A mid-afternoon walk around the property last Wednesday turned up an unexpected visitor – a Red-veined Darter (Sympetrum fonscolombii), which is a migrant to the UK. There have been a fair number reported in the county over the past few weeks, but ours is the first one in our corner of Norfolk. When I entered our record in the national database, it told me it was "outside the known range" of the species! That's a bit hyperbolic if we're honest, considering there are records in both directions from us along the coast. This is a young male, which hasn't completely coloured up yet; as a full adult, he'll be bright scarlet. But he's already showing his distinctive red wing veins and black-outlined red pterostigma (those bright patches of colour near the tips of his wings), and the blue lower half of his huge eye is distinctive. Normally, this species is found in southern Europe and northern Africa. In the UK, it most often shows up in southwestern England, but has been recorded as far north as Scotland. Though it breeds in Britain nearly annually, no permanent population has yet been established. It's a strong migrant, and has been found well out to sea. The Field Guide to the Dragonflies of Britain and Europe says that in invasion years, Red-veined Darters can be quite common in northern Europe, and that such invasion years are becoming more frequent. We certainly seem to be in the throes of one this year.

Fat dragonflies

Male Broad-bodied Chaser (Libellula depressa)

Our new pond has attracted a new couple – at least two Broad-bodied Chasers (Libellula depressa) that this week have spent long minutes perched on dead sticks that Mike positioned along the pond's edges. This is a distinctively "fat" dragonfly, easily identifiable by its short, broad abdomen. The male is blue while the female is golden-brown. Both have a row of yellow spots along the sides of the abdomen, and both have dark triangular marks at the base of their wings. According to the British Dragonfly Society, this species may be the first to colonize new ponds. It's typically found around ponds and small lakes, patrolling over the water's edge in swift flights and returning again and again to the same low perch (in our garden, that's the base of one of the sticks Mike put in). This is a common species in southern and central England and southern Wales. Elsewhere, it's one of the commonest dragonflies from Europe right across to central Asia. It flies from mostly from May through July, though it can be seen as early as April (in warmer years) and as late as September. We're hoping the female will decide to lay her eggs here, though the pond may not have enough vegetation yet to entice her to do so. If she likes the look of things, she'll hover over the pond, dipping her abdomen repeatedly into the water and dropping her eggs onto vegetation below the surface. There would certainly be plenty of pond life in there for her larvae to eat!

Female

Here Be Dragons

I finally got my first picture of a dragonfly in the garden on Tuesday; it's a Migrant Hawker (Aeshna mixta). She was hunting along the edge of the hedges near our herb bed, probably in pursuit of one of the zillion hoverflies or bees currently visiting the fennel and thyme flowers. Periodically, though, she'd hang up on a bit of vegetation (or, once, on one of our patio chairs) for a bit of a rest. I know it's a "she" because she only has two, rather than three, appendages at the end of her abdomen; a male would have a third, shorter appendage between the two longer ones. She's probably newly emerged, as older females have yellow rather than white markings on their brown bodies. The combination of the pale "flat-headed nail" shape at the top of the abdomen and the dark band above it is a useful ID feature.

Migrant Hawkers are common and widespread on the continent, ranging over most of Europe all the way east to Japan. In Britain, they're common in southern and central England and Wales, flying from late July well into the autumn. They quite the aerialists — among the fastest-flying of Britain's dragonflies, and capable of hovering and flying backwards. In general, they hunt above 2 meters (6-7 feet) off the ground, often along the edges of trees, catching their insect prey in flight. They breed in still or slow-moving water but range far from their breeding areas while hunting, as this one clearly did. Hopefully, she found the buffet to her liking and will be back!