More from my Garden Pond.

A bit of pond-dipping today produced a handsome Emperor Dragonfly larva.Measuring about 4 to 5 centimetres,it is our largest dragonfly nymph.I was very pleased to see it as this season I have not seen any evidence of emerging Emperors at my pond.Last year I found five exuviae,so I hope there are others in the pond.

Somewhat later in the afternoon I was treated to a female Southern Hawker continually circling the pond to lay her eggs on the pondside vegetation.

Time for the Small Red-eyes.

As mentioned in my entry about the Small Red-eyed Damselflies of February this year,the months of July and particularly August are the time to see this very dainty damselfly.

It is a relatively recent addition to the odonata of the Isle of Wight and can be found at several locations now.At  a private garden pond in the village of Shalfleet I was fortunate enough to see several males and ovipositing pairs.The males tend to spend their time on lily pads and the females are most easily seen when in tandem with a male, laying eggs into pond weed.

In and Around My Garden Pond.

Although there has not been great activity at my pond this year the odd dragonfly continues to show up.Most numerous at the moment is the Common Darter,and yesterday at least six males were competing for the best spots to attract and catch a female.

Yesterday was also the first occasion this season when I saw a Common Frog at the pond.Unfortunately not a usual sight here as I have discovered no spawn since creating the pond.

Another first was the presence of a handsome Grass Snake which would surface and investigate the nooks and crannies along the bank for prey.Hopefully the palmate newts in the pond took cover.

Hawking in my Back Yard.

The lack of hawkers in and around my  garden pond this year has been notable although I have witnessed a female Southern Hawker attempting to oviposit on a couple of occasions.Also I have seen a male of the same species investigate the pond.

However today I was fortunate enough to observe an immature male Migrant Hawker spend some time in the garden,the first Migrant I  have known to visit my site.Let us hope that things improve over the next month or two.