Weldon Variable Hunt

An after work tromp down to Weldon where I hoped to catch up with some Variable Damselflies. Unfortunately I couldn't find any despite spending several hours looking for them. However despite this dippy downer I did find a few things of interest which made the numerous nettle sticks a little easier to take!

Azure Damsel and rufescens form of Blue-tailed.

Numbers of Azure Damselflies are growing with over ten being seen though Large Reds remain the commonest species next to this part of the stream, several pairs were seen in cop. Amongst the few Blue-tailed noted was an attractive rufescens form female, I think that this is my favourite colour form of this variable (small V!) species. At least three Bandeds were seen hiding out in the nettles, their red eyes suggested that they were newly emerged.

Female and male Banded Demoiselles.

From the stream I took a stroll around the neighbouring pond where the Coots have some freshly hatched chicks. The Lesser Whitethroat appears to be settling in and was again heard singing. No new damsels were seen here though there were more Banded Demoiselles here than along the stream. Grizzled Skipper was a bit of a surprise as I've never seen one here, I suspect it's a wandering individual which may have come from the healthy Priors Hall population. Other butterflies observed today included a Comma, two or three Brimstones, a similar number of Orange-tips and two Holly Blues.

Large Red and White-legged Damselflies.

I then walked along to another stretch of the stream near the church where plenty more Banded Demoiselles were seen. The surprise here was the discovery of two White-legged Damselflies which were quite a bit earlier than in previous years. One had flown up from some long grass next to the stream and although I was fairly confident with my ID I still wanted confirmation. It lead me on a bit of a song and dance before finally settling for longer than a second. Happy with my ID and happier still to get some pictures I left soon afterwards as dinner time was fast approaching.

Comma and Long-tailed Tit.