Monday 28th September
We had a good day Sunday at Bentley Wood, so I needed a fix. A fix of the Moorland kind. Now the pond at Cadnam Common may have come up with the goods, as I’ve seen them there briefly recently, and of course Ramsdown. However both can be unpredictable and it’s often a gamble. I needed to hedge my bets.
Forecast good? Priddy it was then.
Imagine then my dismay as despite a glorious day and a little breeze, the main pool around the entrance only had one Southern, one Migrant and an occasional Moorland – and these didn’t stay around for long.
Over in the far corner there was a female Moorland ovipositing, a couple of Black Darters, some Common Emerald and a few Common Blue. Naturally it was the Common Darters who dominated proceedings, but even these were scattered and few. I didn’t receive any opportunities until after 3.00pm when my quarry flew back & forth against the sun.
Not the best I could do, and I thought that’s it; the only shot of the day! Thankfully my next encounter was to give me my best opportunity on this quiet day.
This is the first female of this species I’ve managed perched (so far) and therefore was a most welcome chance to get up close and witness one who wasn’t ovipositing or checking out a pond from 20 feet above.
Result then…and I was finally happy. On my way back through I checked the thicket for any perched hawkers. None to be found, but my next rush arrived with a male flying in, circling me for a while, hovering inches in front of my nether regions (!) before finally settling on my right thigh. Too damn close for a photo, but the experience was enough.
A perfect end to an otherwise frustrating day.
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PS:- There has been a recent gripe by a fellow on social media who takes offence to my referring to Aeshna juncea as the Moorland Hawker. ‘Not as it appears in his book’ was the general gist. Those who know me know I prefer to use the Dijkstra name as it’s more descriptive of the species, as is the other suggested ‘common’ name, Sedge Hawker.
There are several other people who share my view. Those who don’t usually ignore my quirks and move on. Unfortunately some use social media as a venting medium for their own inadequacies and are best ignored.