148. Orange-winged Dropwing - Trithemis kirbyi - European Dragonfly photo The Orange-winged Drowing ( Trithemis kirbyi ) is a spectacular dragonfly. Finding this species in Andalucia in 2012 and seeing that it wasn’t shown in ‘The Field Guide to the Dragonflies of Britain and Europe’ I became excited, only to learn that it had first been seen [...]
Trithemis – Dropwings 146. Violet Dropwing - Trithemis annulata - European Dragonfly photo The Violet Dropwing ( Trithemis annulata ) in the first photograph illustrates how the Dropwings were given their English name. This is a very common dragonfly throughout Africa with its range expanding into Spain during the last years of the 1970’s and into France [...]
Crocothemis – Scarlets 144. Broad Scarlet - Scarlet Darter - Crocothemis erythraea - UK - European Dragonfly photo The Broad Scarlet or Scarlet Darter ( Crocothemis erythraea ) is a common species on the Continent and throughout Africa. It is expanding its range steadily northward and was first recorded in the U.K. in 1995. It is popularly known [...]
142. Desert Darter - Sympetrum sinaiticum - European Dragonfly photo The Desert Darter ( Sympetrum sinaiticum ) is a species which has only fairly recently been clarified. It is not common along the Meditteranean coast of Spain but it is also found in Tunisia. The habitat shown here is interesting, being high in the hills above [...]
135. Red-veined Darter - Sympetrum fonscolombii - UK - European Dragonfly photo I once found the Red-veined Darter ( Sympetrum fonscolombii ) sheltering in hundreds of both sexes in an old quarry above the Straits of Gibraltar on a very blustery autumnal day with a strong wind blowing inland from the Meditteranean. I began to wonder if [...]
132. Ruddy Darter - Sympetrum sanguineum - UK - European Dragonfly photo The Ruddy Darter ( Sympetrum sanguineum ) was another species which made a rapid northerly extension of its range in the U K in the 1980's and 90's, being first discovered in my county of Cheshire on 25th July 1985. Here it favours [...]
Sympetrum – Darters – Meadowhawks (NA) 130. Black Darter - Sympetrum danae - Danes Moss, UK - European Dragonfly photo The Black Darter (Sympetrum danae) is a Sympetrum species which has an extensive range from North America (Black Meadowhawk) to Japan and is common on northern acidic bogs. Males change colouration radically from being largely yellow with [...]
Leucorrhinia – Whitefaces 125. Small Whiteface - White-faced Darter - Leucorrhinia dubia - UK - European Dragonfly photo The Small Whiteface, White-faced Darter ( Leucorrhinia dubia ) is a species of national importance in the U.K. with declining numbers due to habitat loss and probable climate change. Sadly this used to be the flagship species for [...]
Orthetrum – Skimmers 116. Black-tailed Skimmer - Orthetrum cancellatum- UK - European Dragonfly photo The Black-tailed Skimmer (Orthetrum coancellatum) is another species which has increased its northerly expansion in the U K into Cheshire over the past few decades. The Orthetrums can be quite difficult to identify, particularly older males, where a number of [...]
114. Blue Chaser - Scarce Chaser - Libellula fulva - UK - European Dragonfly photo The Blue Chaser ( Libellula fulva ) becomes the Scarce Chaser in the British Dragonfly Society's nomenclature and this was an incentive to photograph the species although where it is found in the UK it is more local than scarce. Apart from [...]