Third Time Lucky

I wanted to try and photograph a/the Willow Emerald(s) at Weldon today and so made my way down there this morning. With the weather set fair for the morning at least it looked quite promising and it really did turn out to be third time lucky as one posed for a minute or two during my visit. Willow Emeralds seem to spend their mornings hunting and this solitary female was doing exactly that. When perched on bare twigs she was quite obvious but as soon as she flew up into the surrounding hawthorns she all but disappeared. At the moment the population appears to be small but who knows how many are hiding amongst the foliage?

Willow Emerald and Banded Demoiselle.

There are still Banded Demoiselles along the stream, they were present in the stretch near the pond and also near the church too. Four species of dragon were noted and these were Migrant and Southern Hawker and Common and Ruddy Darter.

Migrant Hawker and Common Darter

A few butterflies continue to flit around with Red Admiral being the commonest, they're particularly drawn to the Ivy flowers that are just starting to come out. Commas too like these flowers and at least two were noted. Small and Large Whites were seen in small numbers and a single Speckled Wood was also observed. The Ivy flowers as well as attracting butterflies and large numbers of bees proved to be a draw for a Volucella hornet mimic hoverfly.

Red Admiral and Comma.

Once again a Kingfisher was the only real bird of note though a singing Chiffchaff was noteworthy.

Large White and Volucella hoverfly.