Author: Paul Ritchie

Saturday was by far the best day I’ve so far this season.

Sue & I arranged to meet Doug at Ogdens for a tour of Latchmore Brook, a fine dragonfly location where you expect to find Golden-ringed and Beautiful Demoiselles on the main stream supported by Large Red and Azure, and the boggy pools should provide Keeled Skimmer, Broad bodied and Four-spotted Chasers, Southern, Azure Large and Small Red and the sought-after Scarce Blue-tailed. On a hot, calm day all should be present, but I’ve been on many days when it’s hard work.

The only one missing from our visit was the Golden-ringed. We did have a patrolling Emperor at Latchmore Shade which made up for it though.

We didn’t have to walk to the usual spot for Scarce Blue-tailed either. Both male and female were present at the flush on the south bank of Latchmore Shade.

Across the stream we found another flush with male, female and even breeding pairs.

Further along where I’ve previously thought to be the main area we found several more males and a green female.

My find of the day was thus breeding pair found in the heather on the way up to Gypsy Hollow.

I can honestly say I don’t think I’ve seen a more beautiful pair of damsels

We continued on to where the best concentrations of Southern and Small Red can be found, along with a supporting cast of Keeled Skimmers.

A very worthwhile afternoon indeed!

I hadn’t planned to venture too far on Thursday, if at all considering the forecast. Wouldn’t it be refreshing if the met office admitted it just didn’t know? As it was the dear old sun made more of an appearance at the pond than it did at Mill Lawn yesterday.

Plenty of activity over the water with the usual Broad-bodied and Four-spotted – the latter being the most numerous. There were several pairings with the FSC’s completing their union in about 5 seconds. The BBC’s last around 15 seconds, just enough time to track and pan if you’re ready for them, but you can never predict their erratic course.

Joining the chasers were Keeled Skimmers, a Downy Emerald and a couple of male Emperors.

Both individuals time-shared the same patch with a quick battle on changeover. On one occasion the pair fell to to margin of the pond below my feet; unfortunately too close to get a shot regardless of my reaction. Luckily one of the patrollers took a quick break at the edge of the reeded island.

The gorse thicket threw up a nice selection of roosting chasers, some Keeled and a Downy while the surrounding ferns produced Large and Small Red, Azure and some nice, fresh Emeralds.

Returning to the pond itself, I contented myself getting used to manual focus on the Sigma 70-300mm. Not as intuitive as the macro prime, but a compromise to get me closer to the action.

I completely neglected Mill Lawn last season; being too busy exploring locations away from the New Forest. Being one of the forest ‘lawns’ it has always attracted the crowds, be they dog walkers, picnickers or the day tripper who wants to enjoy the forest without straying too far or onto uneven ground.

Thankfully for the Odo enthusiast the key sections are south of the stream, the side with that ‘uneven ground’. I recommend following the stream itself for Beautiful Demoiselles, Golden-ringed and other passing traffic and fully exploring the flushes which lead into the main flow from the boggy areas to the south.

There are several sections where you are forced upstream to cross these flushes and each one usually has something to offer, whether it be Southern and Small Red Damselflies or parading Keeled Skimmers, Broad-bodied or and Four-spotted Chasers. There is also a well-vegetated channel parallel to the stream which is ideal habitat for Scarce Blue.

With signs of a better Wednesday morning I took advantage of an early start, arriving just 9.00am at the main car park. As you walk towards the stream, there is a small bridge crossing the first flush. This is well worth exploring as in the first few minutes I had Southern, Large and Small Red, Beautiful Demoiselle, Keeled Skimmer and Broad-bodied Chaser.

The main stream and flushes produced more of the same with the majority of the action centred on the furthest. Certainly the Southern population was remarkably rich. A little further along, just before Rooks Bridge, is a stand of gorse where I disturbed a roosting Golden-ringed, which unfortunately flew off uphill with a graceful glide.

And then the sun disappeared…and didn’t appear for the rest of my stay.

I amused myself by wandering a little further through the woods and to search another area before returning and taking a slow, searching walk up & down each flush. The populations of damsels had certainly reduced, although there were several Southern scattered throughout the heather. A pair of Large Red chose a bramble bush to complete their union.

The lack of sun meant any Scarce were going to be almost impossible to locate, so I concentrating on the one nearest the car park for the last half hour and practised picking out Southern and Small Red among the lush vegetation.

Like Ober Water and Latchmore Brook, Mill Lawn is at its best on a calm, warm and most of all sunny day. Wednesday started out well but soon returned to default, but a fruitful walk non-the-less in a pleasant environment which deserves a rain check.

A break in the wind and the promise of some decent temperatures and maybe some sunshine was a good enough reason to take a walk along Latchmore Brook on Tuesday morning. The walk up to Latchmore Shade only produced a Large Red; not even a sign of Beautiful Demoiselles!

Across the stream to follow the opposite bank, a few teneral Keeled Skimmers rose from the heather but the main boggy pool was devoid of any action. Not quite warn enough. Certainly not warn enough for any Scarce Blue-tailed just yet, so I followed the flush as far as I could up the hill encountering more Large Red and some diversity in the form of Southern and Small Red.

There was an ugly black ribbon of cloud obscuring the sun for most of my visit and I found myself frustratingly waiting for a glimmer of sunlight to bring out the Scarce Blue-tailed. I did have a couple of Broad-bodied and Four-spotted Chasers pay a brief visit, and a tandem pair of Large Red were seeking out the best spots to deposit their fertilised.eggs.

After an age of staring at the pool I began to get a insight into what it must be like to watch paint dry…

Finally, a break in the gloom, and the welcome sight of a few males appearing as if from nowhere to satisfy my tenacity.

As yet I haven’t been fortunate to find a Scarce elsewhere other than hovering over their chosen pool, and it’s always a challenge to grab a shot from a distance – especially with so much emerging vegetation.

I mentally crossed my fingers hoping one might perch on a blue or yellow bloom, but had to be content with the usual low down stems.

I was quite prepared to stay put and wait for some more sunshine, but I had again run out of time. I returned via the stream, passing the boggy pool where still nothing was to be seen. At least the stream provided a few Beautiful Demoiselles and a couple of Broad-bodied chasers to round the visit off.

On the way back I bumped into a couple of dragonfly enthusiasts who asked me if I’d seen any other species than the latter. Under different circumstances I would’ve been prepared to show them the best areas for their quarry, but all I could offer was a general clue. If you were the couple I hope you found what you were looking for and I can only apologise for not having time to be of any further help.

A pleasant Wednesday morning. Hot, humid, calm – pretty much the same as yesterday although with periods of hazy sunshine. The increase in temperature certainly benefited the damsels with Azure, Common Blue and Large Red already making use of Rushbush Pond. On the way in I did my usual flush through the gorse and heather and stirred up a couple of Broad-bodied and several Four-spotted Chasers; the latter preferring to perch low down.

A quick skirt around Furzey Pond, which was rife with Azure, and across the road to Dibden Bottom. I peeled off the road a little earlier and realised I was following a different path to usual. Little errors and getting lost often reveal hidden treasures and I came across another pond which I’ve totally failed to notice before!

In the half-hour since Rushnush, things had woken up considerably with the usual damsel cast , several FSC’s and a couple of male Emperors holding their territories until they’d meet, battle and resume. I spent a good half-hour just watching.

They were too far away to attempt a decent in-flighter.

Back around to the usual shallow ponds where things were repeated in smaller doses, almost subdued compared to the excitement around the corner. And then I spotted the Emerald. At least I’m positive my eyes weren’t deceiving me, but getting close and confirming for sure wasn’t going to happen. I spent another half-hour doing a fingertip search of the area knowing where’s there’s one, there are usually more. Not this time though. Perhaps it was a mirage?

I decided to approach my new found pond from the opposite direction, avoiding the worst of the boggy areas and even finding a faint path. Back at the pond a few Keeled Skimmers decided to join the cast.

Finally my curiosity was rewarded with the unmistakeable sight of a teneral Emerald rising from the margins to be carried out across the heather.

And then a few more.

I knew I hadn’t been hallucinating. Mission accomplished, I returned via Rushbush and decided to take a walk alongside Matley Bog to the young Beaulieu River below. Incredibly disappointing after a productive morning. Just a few Azures and FSC’s using the shallow cattle pond near the railway.

With a few moments to spare before I had to meet Sue, I called in briefly to the gully pond at Testwood Lakes Reserve just in time to find a female Emperor ovipositing.

Such is the lateness of the season that I’ve left it until now to take my first full traverse of Ober Water. A warm, humid yet overcast day with very little or no wind to speak of. Makes a change, but some sunshine would have kicked things along a bit. As it was my 9.00am start revealed absolutely nothing along Silver Stream – not even the expected teneral Keeled Skimmers rising from the heather.

I had to wait until I reached the bogs on the other side of the hill before I found any.

After negotiating some precarious sections of Crab Tree Bog I reached the main stream where a few Beautiful Demoiselles fluttered through the bog myrtle on the opposite bank, and a few further upstream. Disappointingly there weren’t any Small Reds occupying the bog myrtle around the boggy margins, and there were no damsels at all flying over the water for the whole stretch down the Markway.

I crossed the A31 to explore the heather to the south in the hope that I may flush out a few sheltering White-legged Damsels, a reliable spot in previous years proving disappointing this time around.

For the return leg I took the upper path back to Puttles Bridge in the hope that I’d find some roosters. About halfway along my first White-legged showed itself, along with half-a-dozen others all taking shelter and feeding a good 200-300 metres from the stream.

A few Large Red and Keeled Skimmers were also joining them for lunch.So four species so far; a paltry count for mid June. Luckily on reaching the boggy pool on the way over the heath the numbers increased a little with the appearance of some Four-spotted Chaser and several Azure joining yet more Large Reds over the water.

Approaching the end of my walk I attempted to pin down a blue male Keeled, but they weren’t having any of it. Reluctant to return to the car just yet, I searched the heather and bog myrtle just the other side of the Rhinefield Road and was delightedd to find a Small Red, my first this year and th eother species I had hoped to find today.

As if to rub it in there were several amongst the ferns in the car park itself, but I had run out of time. So there you go…if a family a day out in the New Forest is best taken within a few metres of the car park, I recommend Puttles Bridge. The wife & kids can stay on the picnic blanket while you delve in amongst the foliage.

I wish I knew sooner. I could’ve had time to take more photos and saved myself a long walk…

This weekend we had hoped to to our annual trip to the Somerset Levels, but the weather put pay to that. If we were going to get buffered around and possibly soaked, best to stay local until conditions improve. Instead Doug & I went in search of a little piece of the levels at Pennington; the situation of the pond in a hollow hopefully prevented the worst of the gusts.

We didn’t expect to see anything over water, and this proved the case except for a few hardy damsels braving the inlets and – surprisingly – a couple of Hairys. In fact the first sighting of a Hairy I had was a mating pair who I caught out of the corner of my eye just before they took off over the stream.

Besides being in a hollow, there are plenty of places providing some shelter, and the rich, lush vegetation which has appeared over the past few weeks was ideal for seeking out feeding and resting damsels. Plenty of Azures and Blue-tailed.

Joining them were a few Large Red, including a superb melanotum female

A most welcome sight were the brief glimpses of Red-eyed, for once away from the water, but still proving extremely difficult to pin down

One section of long grass just inside the reserve was home to the majority, and this was the first time in years we’ve been blessed with similar spectacles to Westhay Moor, glittering prizes rising up before you in luminous shades of red and blue.

This was more than enough to keep me occupied, and finding more terrestrial Red-eyed gave me a mission, if not fully realised.

After skirting the reserve a couple of times, we returned to the sheltered, lively spots and as I was seeking out more damsels, a male Hairy rose from just in front of me to land awkwardly in the bramble across the path. We attempted a shot, but his position was frankly awful, which I think he realised as he rose and returned to his previous bush.

Yes, a few annoying fronds and a busy background, but believe me to capture a perched Hairy in Hampshire is something of an achievement. Doug was especially pleased as this species is one of his needed video opportunities and thankfully our subject stayed around long enough to complete his mission.

We took a walk along the river to the rides, and were soon rewarded with a female Emperor patrolling and feeding on the few available butterflies. We stood still and watched as she circled us, frequently approaching within half a meter of our heads as she checked us over.

We waited patiently for her to perch, but when she did it was several metres away and out of sight, so as we drew near she was up and off again. This happened a couple of times before we lost her completely. A shame, but a real delight to just watch. In that little ride she appeared much larger than usual.

We caught sight of another male Hairy on the way back, but we didn’t encounter anything else large, and by now most of the damsels were hunkering down in anticipation of the grey cloud bearing down upon us. I made do with a male Beautiful Demoiselle to round the visit off.

Such was the turn in the weather I almost completely failed to call in at Crockford on the way back. I did park, and got out of the car before briskly crawling back in again. Crockford will still be there when the sun shines.

Still, a little bit of that Somerset feeling on a windy day here in Hampshire.

Getting worryingly frustrated with the lack of greater diversity, I decided to hone in on what was available without repeating myself unnecessarily. A combination of not encountering a new challenge on the larger front, realising the Downy I was chasing wasn’t going to play ball and the realisation after two hours spent pond-side all I really had to show was a Large Red.

With a relatively dull Monday forecast – commitments and weather-wise – Sue & I took a couple of hours to brush away the stench of city life with a visit to Swanwick Nature Reserve. We didn’t expect much, but we did want to check on the populations of Blue-tailed – sadly lacking on my recent visit.

There were a few around the main lake, but thankfully the higher population were scattered throughout the small open meadow bordering the fishing lake. Not the usual swarms – just a scattering of males and variant females.

This little meadow area proved to be the highlight of our walk around the reserve, with only a few scattered damsels found elsewhere, mainly Common Blue and Azure.

Worth a couple of hours on a dull day for the Blue-tailed, a damsel that can all too often be ignored with increasing familiarity. The same can also be said for Azure, Common Blue and Large Red. We should always appreciate these little jewelled wonders. We’ll miss them when they’re gone.

On Saturday I decided to visit a few sites in the South of the New Forest, hoping at least to find some shelter from a very stiff breeze. First call was Rushbush Pond. A reccie of the extensive gorse thicket close to the road failed to reveal anything of interest, and I had to wait until I approached the pond itself before I saw anything other than moths.

A few Common Blue and Large Red Damsels were huddled in the young heather and a few Four-spotted Chasers were seen lifting only to be carried away on the breeze. A favourite corner at least produced a vibrant female Broad-bodied Chaser.

In truth 9.30am was a little too early, but after a couple of days rest I was eager to get out.
Next stop Badminston Common, which revealed the usual Large Red and Common Blue.

I had hoped to see a Hairy, or maybe an Emperor, but the the only larger game braving the breeze over water was a Four-spotted Chaser.

It was along the path that I found something different. Hopping from one terrestrial perch to another was the welcome sight of a male Black-tailed Skimmer.

I’d forgotten how infuriating they can be with their habit of landing on the ground. I had considered lying down to get some depth, but as I couldn’t complete the manoeuvre in the two seconds he perched, I chose to kneel.

Next stop Pennington and I’m pleased to report it’s woken up considerably since my last visit. Along with the usual suspects there were a good number of Red-eyed in tandem over the water. Blue-tailed were disappointedly low in number, but several Beautiful and a couple of Banded Demoiselles brightened up the foliage.

At the far end a couple of male Black-tailed Skimmers were holding court, and patrolling the middle and other end were a couple of Downy Emeralds and, most welcome, a couple of male Hairy Dragonflies – the first I’ve managed to see this season. I tried, and failed, to grab a shot as they sporadically appeared to weave in & out of the reeds at a frantic pace.

On the way back I called into Crockford, because driving past would be unforgivable. Still wet & muddy from the Spring and the topping up from Friday’s thundery showers. A few Four-spotted and Broad-bodied Chasers were patrolling the pools and occasionally a teneral Keeled Skimmer rose from the heather. Along the stream itself were a very few Beautiful Demoiselles and the inevitable Large Red.

Showing well in the shelter of the bank were several Southern Damselflies.

So three new species added this season, the elusive Hairy being the highlight.

Anxious to make the most of this mini heatwave (sic) I headed further afield Tuesday, calling in first to Blashford Lakes just in case there were a few stragglers from the recent Emperor emergence. I took the short walk along the usual path and filled my boots with a few Common Blues.

The minimal reeds around Ellingham Pound showed signs of recent damsel emergence, but nothing else – not even the usual cast of Blue-tailed or Red-eyed. I returned to the centre pond and for once took the bins out of the bag to scour the reeds on the opposite bank. Sure enough there were several empty exuvia and hidden deep within was an emerging Emperor.

I continued to Troublefield and was sorely disappointed. I hoped I wouldn’t be, but all I saw after searching both fields were a few Azure, Large Red and Beautiful Demoiselles – not nearly enough and far less than just over a week ago. The uneven ground and watery holes were beginning to grate, so I hopped over to Ramsdown in the hope I may find a few more Scarce Chasers, or maybe something else.

The only large dragons flying over the pond were Four-spotted Chasers and very few damsels. A fresh FSC flew up from the heather and landed nearby.

So far no Scarce, and feeling a little dispondent and more than a little tired I brushed through the hill in the hope I might flush something out. I did, but not what I was expecting.

I shouldn’t have been too surprised as I’ve found Golden-ringed in May in previous seasons, but I wasn’t really expecting a GR so soon considering everything else is late. Despite being in a tricky position, it did raise my spirits enough to continue on.

After doing a full circuit, I was about to return to the car when I spotted a Scarce Chaser rise up out of the scrub.

I went around again and spotted a male Broad-bodied Chaser chilling out along the path.

Again this was a little surprising considering I hadn’t seen any sign of them over the ponds.

Back over the hill a few more Scarce Chasers showed themselves. In all about half-a-dozen, so perhaps still a little early for the majority.