Sunday, 3 August 2014
Penallta & Parc Cwm Darren Today 03/08/2014
A bit wet and windy at Penallta horse-shoe ponds this morning, the only things around the ponds where Common Darters and some Emerald Damsels.
So I moved on to P.C.D. where the weather had cleared up a bit but still not alot on the wing at the new Dragonfly pond. Again there were Emeralds with some in tandem and a few Azure Damsels.
But then something caught my eye in the reeds a new emergence, possible a Migrant Hawker?(correct me if I am wrong) with the Exuvia close by.
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2 comments:
I think the Hawker is probably a female Common Hawker. This based on the less obvious lateral spines on the cast, which appears to be relatively long. There is no overlap in length of the exuviae of Migrant Hawker and Common Hawker so a measurement of it would prove definitive. Common Hawkers are never less than 40mm and Migrant Hawkers never more than 38mm.
The recently emerged dragonfly which is still drying out does seem to show hints of a yellow costa, although it's difficult to be absolutely certain before the wings are properly dried out. The lateral markings of the thorax and abdomen seem closer to Common to my eye and the anal appendages not quite as long as one might expect on a Migrant Hawker. A tough call I think and others might disagree with me, but I'd be inclined to log this as a Common Hawker female. The photo does prove breeding for this site, which is always good.
Thanks Mark I thought at first Common Hawker but Emergence location specified in the book made me think otherwise. Still a good record of breeding, this pool has given a couple of good records.
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