Dragonfly
and Damselfly Photos 2022
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Common Darter, Standlake Common, Oxfordshire
8 October 2022
It has been a difficult time for me
recently, but it was good to be able to get out today. Nice to see
a late dragonfly in the sunny conditions. Thanks to David Hastings
for finding it!
Quite possibly my last photo of the season.
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Migrant Hawker, Faringdon Folly Park Pond, Grove, Oxfordshire
7 September 2022
With a bit of sun today, I paid a quick
visit to this site to see what late season species were around. In
the blustery conditions, the Migrant Hawkers weren't posing well
but I got a few frames of this one in flight - rather distant.
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Migrant Hawker, Grove Meadows Stormwater Pond, Grove, Oxfordshire
26 August 2022
My customary late season Migrant Hawker
in-flight shots. This individual was being less obliging than
some, and only hovering for very brief periods at very variable
distances from the lens.
The head-on view.
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Migrant Hawker, Grove Meadows Stormwater Pond, Grove, Oxfordshire
26 August 2022
As above, but nearly sideways on.
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Migrant Hawker, Grove Meadows Stormwater Pond, Grove, Oxfordshire
26 August 2022
Briefly settled with a plain background.
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Willow Emerald Damselfly, Trap Grounds, Oxford
19 August 2022
Time for a change of scene and a hunt for
some species variety! This male posed for awhile on this stem but
the wind didn't help with keeping it still.
A huge thanks
to Nicola Devine for showing me around and finding most of these!
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Willow Emerald Damselfly, Trap Grounds, Oxford
19 August 2022
This one was easier to approach more closely
than the one above. This a "partial" focus stack image, using
about 4 shots to just get the whole body sharp, without the wings
which were moving around in the breeze.
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Common Darter, Grove Meadows Stormwater Pond,
Grove, Oxon
11 August 2022
An in-flight photo
- coming closer than usual at this site, but not easy to get onto
in the hot conditions.
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Small Red-eyed Damselfly, Grove Meadows Stormwater Pond,
Grove, Oxon
11 August 2022
With 70+ individuals
counted here, a few had started to settle on the vegetation
surrounding the pool. I rather liked this pink flower that was favoured by
them. Another focus-stacked image.
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Small Red-eyed Damselfly, Grove Meadows Stormwater Pond,
Grove, Oxon
11 August 2022
A tandem pair close in
to the bank - another focus-stacked image.
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Small Red-eyed Damselfly, Faringdon Folly Park Pond,
Oxon
9 August 2022
This species is also doing well
at this site in the favourable conditions (for Odonata that is).
This is a focus-stacked photo.
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Common Darter, Faringdon Folly Park Pond,
Oxon
9 August 2022
Looking good in the morning sun!
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Common Darter, Grove Meadows Stormwater Pond,
Grove, Oxon
19 July 2022
Mature adult males are
beginning to show around the edge of this pond. Another
focus-stacked image.
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Small Red-eyed Damselfly, Grove Meadows Stormwater Pond,
Grove, Oxon
19 July 2022
The comments below for the photo
all apply to this shot, which is also focus-stacked.
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Small Red-eyed Damselfly, Grove Meadows Stormwater Pond,
Grove, Oxon
9 July 2022
Small Red-eyed Damselflies
can be quite difficult to photo as they may keep well away from
the bank. However at one particular spot at this site, they were coming closer than usual, once the sun had come out.
The tilting screen on the Canon R5 was useful in getting a
reasonably low camera angle.
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Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly, Dida Gardens Pond, Didcot, Oxon
17 June 2022
Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly is an Oxon rarity, and wasn't
recorded between 2000 and 2020. A colony was then discovered on a
stormwater pond in Banbury, which was followed in 2021 by another colony
again at a stormwater pond in Didcot. This year they were also
found on a more accessible pond on a nearby housing estate.
Previously, around a dozen had been reported here but I initially
struggled to find any. However after some time, I managed to spot
2-3 in the considerable heat!
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Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly, Dida Gardens Pond, Didcot, Oxon
17 June 2022
Another slightly closer shot. These were not easy subjects to get
close to!
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Broad-bodied Chaser, Dida Gardens Pond, Didcot, Oxon
17 June 2022
There was plenty of other activity on this site, including this
fine male Broad-bodied Chaser. Didn't settle for long in the hot
conditions though.
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Scarce Chaser, Shillingford, Oxon
15 June 2022
This super Oxon rarity (this was only the third record ever), was
found the previous evening by John Bloomfield.
Very
fortunately, it was still present at exactly the same spot the
next morning. I spotted it immediately on arrival but it stayed
for only ten minutes before disappearing.
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Scarce Chaser, Shillingford, Oxon
15 June 2022
The view from the front. The light here wasn't the best - much
improved in the late afternoon/evening for those observers who
came later!
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Broad-bodied Chaser, Scantlebury Way Pond, Wantage, Oxon
14 June 2022
The water quality at this stormwater pond looked very poor and
cloudy. Despite this, there was some activity including this
female Broad-bodied Chaser ovipositing and hovering briefly.
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Broad-bodied Chaser, Scantlebury Way Pond, Wantage, Oxon
14 June 2022
In the momentary act of ovipositing.
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Broad-bodied Chaser, Scantlebury Way Pond, Wantage, Oxon
14 June 2022
The head-on view.
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Common Blue Damselfly, Thrupp Lake, Radley, Oxon
11 June 2022
I had been hoping for some Downy Emerald shots from the
boardwalk in the NW corner of this lake but they were being
harassed constantly by the damselflies and never hovered long
enough.
So instead I tried this unusual perspective on the
pesky damselflies flying around low over the water below me!
Not for the first time, this shot was only possible because of
the remarkable AF on the Canon EOS R5!
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Azure Damselflies, Boundary Brook Nature Reserve, Oxford
10 June 2022
Not a great deal of photo opps here this morning, so I tried a
few flight shots of these damselflies in cop. High ISO needed!
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Emperor, Grove Meadows Stormwater Pond, Oxon
7 June
2022
In dull conditions, the Emperors on this pond seemed
to be coming closer to the bank than usual and very occasionally
hovering for long enough to get onto them.
Even so this was
the only shot I got of one that was virtually sideways on to the
camera.
Probably my closest sharpest Emperor-in-flight
photo.
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Large Red Damselfly, Faringdon Folly Park Pond, Oxon
21 May 2022
Another focus stacked image.
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Blue-tailed Damselfly, Faringdon Folly Park Pond, Oxon
21 May 2022
A focus stacked image.
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Common Blue Damselfly, Standlake Common, Oxon
17 May 2022
A teneral female briefly settled on the bridge at the end of
Langley Lane, by the stream.
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Clubtail larva, Goring (Gatehampton) Railway Bridge, Oxon
14 May 2022
Clubtails appear to be having a good season so far. There
were at least 8 exuviae here today, but no sign of any emergents
or adults unfortunately.
However later that day (mid-afternoon) an
emergent was seen by another observer. |
© All pictures
copyright Stephen Burch |