2011
1 November
2011
An
emerald green Southern Hawker (dragonfly)
hawked along the western end of Nicolson Drive in residential Shoreham.
15
September 2011
On
a pleasant day (>17.2
°C), the outskirts of Shoreham (Waterworks
Road - Pixie Path - Chanctonbury Drive, passage
trek) a handful of Common Darters
(dragonfly)
flew rapidly overhead with none of them showing any signs of settling.
11
September 2011
Three
splendid blue South Hawkers
(dragonfly)
were the most impressive sight on a cloudy
day with two around the hedgerows below Old
Erringham (on the levels to the south-west
of the farm; on the road to Old Erringham) and another one over the Pixie
Path to Mill Hill. A Common
Darter landed on the Downs-Coastal Link
Cyclepath north of Old Shoreham.
26
August 2011
A
emerald green Southern Hawker (dragonfly)
hawked to and fro long the Buddleia-lined
Downs-Coastal Link Cyclepath at Upper Beeding. It was an impressive insect
which I watched for a few minutes.
27
July 2011
On
the Pixie Path I spotted my first Migrant
Hawker (dragonfly),
Aeshna
mixta, of the year. This was a distant
view and the identification is just a probable. The thorax appeared light
blue in the brief sighting and the the abdomen a much darker blue, almost
black with patterns.
There
was also at least two Common Darters.
24
July 2011
On
the top part of the Pixie Path I spotted my
first Common Darter
(dragonfly)
of the year.
1 July
2011
As
the sun shined intermittently through the clouds,
I spotted my first Blue-tailed Damselfly
of the year on the River
Adur eastern towpath at the same latitude
as Mill Hill (south of the upper car park)
(TQ
202 073).
4 June
2011
It
was warm and blustery, the warmest day
of the year so far recorded at 25.8
°Cat 3:00
pm, but again spoilt by steady Strong Breeze
(Force 6) from the north-east gusting to Gale
Force
7 all through
the day. Two bluish-green Hawker dragonflies
were seen sparring at the top of Chanctonbury Drive, north Shoreham (SE
of Mill Hill), but they flew upwards over house height against the wind
before I could get a closer look.
1 June
2011
A
large bright blue dragonfly
cruised over the Ladywell's Stream by the Scout Hut, and although it was
prominent as it flew to and fro, it never got close enough for a positive
identification. I think it was probably a male Broad-bodied
Chaser although
it looked longer. One pair of Azure
Damselflies,
Coenagrion
puella, flew
in a mating tandem over the stream and there were singles seen.
31
May 2011
Immediately
I entered the Bramble-bordered path that opening up in the southern bank
of the Buckingham Cutting, a Broad-bodied
Chaser, Libellula
depressa,
landed.
21
May 2011
The
first Common Blue Damselfly of
the year put in an appearance in amongst the brambles in a shady area behind
the southern bank of the Buckingham Cutting.
Two female Broad-bodied Chasers, Libellula depressa, (a dragonfly) cruised over an open part of the path that runs parallel with the dual carriageway at the top of the southern embankment of the the Slonk Hill Cutting. Both of them settled, one of them long enough for the photograph above.
4 May 2011
29
April 2011
2010
| 6
October 2010
Two dragonflies were seen: a Common Darter on the top part of Mill Hill, and a Migrant Hawker, Aeshna mixta, on the north-south part of the Pixie Path. |
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| Late
September 2010
Common Darters (dragonfly) were occasionally seen on the Pixie Path and Mill Hill. |
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10
September 2010
On
a day too cool for butterflies
a Southern Hawker patrolled
the Coastal-Downs
Link Cyclepath north of Old Shoreham.
 |
7
September 2010
On the hedgerows on the southern side of Buckingham Cutting, a Migrant Hawker (dragonfly), Aeshna mixta, flew over and then it was spotted settled on Bramble with blackberries. |
1 September
2010
Common
Darters (dragonfly)
were seen beside the stream at Brooklands, east Worthing with one impressive
Southern
Hawker flew by in the brief spell of sunshine.
31
August 2010
Teneral
Common
Darters (dragonfly)
appeared with half a dozen seen over the footpath section of the Waterworks
Road, Old Shoreham.
29
August 2010
At
least two Common Darters
(dragonfly) were seen, one in the hedgerows
on the south side of Buckingham Cutting and
the other one on the Pixie Path. A Southern
Hawker flew by the hedgerows at top of
Chanctonbury Drive (SE of the Mill Hill Road Bridge).
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24
August 2010
This looks like a teneral male Migrant Hawker, Aeshna mixta, one of two hawkers on the the Buckingham Cutting area south.
There was a Common Blue Damselfly that flitted over the meadow. Common Darters (dragonfly) were occasionally seen on the Pixie Path. |
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19 August 2010 After
the overnight rain shower, I made an extended visit to the Buckingham
Cutting area from the eastern end. Odonata
were represented by a dangerous-looking (from a butterfly's view) Southern
Hawker (dragonfly),
a handful of Common Darters and
my first Common Blue Damselfly
of the year.
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12
August 2010
A
Southern
Hawker flew
rapidly over the Co-operative (=Somerfield) supermarket along Ham Road,
Shoreham.
9
August 2010
There
was an active Southern
Hawker in the meadow south of the top
copse on Mill Hill and at least two Common
Darters over Frampton's Field, Old
Shoreham.
28
July 2010
There
was a fresh Southern
Hawker mobbed
by a Holly Blue Butterfly
in the Butterfly Copse near the Waterworks
Road, and a Common
Darter on the path that runs along the
south side of Frampton's Field, Old Shoreham.
18
July 2010
In
the immediate hedgerow as the path leads east from the southern bank of
Buckingham
Cutting, north Shoreham, there was an explosion of flying insects:
dragonflies,
butterflies,
hoverflies
and other small flies and beetles.
A Southern Hawker (dragonfly)
had scared the butterflies into hiding but after it flew off three Speckled
Woods and a Comma
Butterfly appeared with another Meadow
Brown.
The first Common Darter (dragonfly)
of
the year was spotted in the same hedgerow.
11
July 2010
A
Southern
Hawker cruised over the mown grass at the top of Chanctonbury Drive,
north Shoreham (SE of Mill Hill) and then rested just too high in the shrubbery
for a photograph.
10
July 2010
At
Shermanbury
the freshwater reaches of the western River
Adur are more like a large slow flowing
stream, with plenty of vegetation including yellow Water
Lilies. Shoals of Rudd
with reddish fins could be seen in the surface waters with much smaller
silvery fish fry.
 |
The River Adur at Shermanbury showing the location of the male Banded Demoiselles. |
By
far the most impressive sight was the appearance of frequent attractive
male
Banded Demoiselles which were everywhere and numbered in excess
of thirty in a small area of river near the road bridge. A large
brown dragonfly cruised repeatedly over the
river, and it was much too large to be a Common
Darter (comparable in size to a Broad-bodied
Chaser but a different shape). My
inclination was to think it was Hairy Dragonfly,
but its identity awaits confirmation. Several Blue-tipped
Damselflies flitted over the river.
Adur
Levels
9 July
2010
A
spectacular male
Banded
Demoiselle (a damselfly),
Calopteryx
splendens, an Azure Damselfly,
and a Small Red Damselfly all
flew over the Annington Sewer near the Oak
Tree.
I
chased a male Broad-bodied Chaser on
my bicycle down the towpath south of the South Downs Way Bridge over the
River
Adur.
8 July
2010
Azure
Damselflies were mating above the small
weir on the Ladywell's Stream (on the Coombes
Road, north of Cuckoo's Corner) with
two dragonflies flying and not settling.
They seemed too small to be Broad-bodied
Chasers compared to the two males seen
over the Lancing Ring dewpond
puddle. A Blue-tailed Damselfly
was seen resting on vegetation by the Ladywell's
Stream, and a Southern
Hawker cruised over the Lancing Ring meadows
and was later seen to the west of the dewpond.
Adur
Levels
2 July
2010
A
first of the year Southern Hawker (dragonfly)
cruised amongst the first flowering Buddleia
along
the Coastal-Downs
Link Cyclepath by the Cement Works at Upper Beeding.
 |
22
June 2010
A female Beautiful Demoiselle, Calopteryx virgo, settled on the top of a leaf amongst vegetation at the top of Slonk Hill Farm Road on the south-west side of the bridge over the A27. |
21
June 2010
A
male Broad-bodied Chaser, Libellula
depressa,
rose from a dry mud patch next to Lancing
Ring dewpond
and flew into the scrub where it hid.
| 20
June 2010
On a day too cool for butterflies a female Broad-bodied Chaser, Libellula depressa, cruised over an open part of the path that runs parallel with the dual carriageway at the top of the southern embankment of the the Slonk Hill Cutting. There is no obvious water nearby but this wandering dragonfly has been seen in this area before. |
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| 18
June 2010
A
Large
Red Damselfly settled at the top of Chanctonbury
Drive, north Shoreham.
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3 June
2010
An
Azure
Damselfly,
Coenagrion
puella, was seen on the Coastal-Downs
Link Cyclepath north of the Toll
Bridge. This one was azure blue in colour.
23
May 2010
Over
the Waterworks
Road, (Old Shoreham), the first female
Broad-bodied
Chaser (dragonfly),
Libellula
depressa,
of the year cruised above my head
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21
April 2010
A Large Red Damselfly were seen on Spring Dyke, (next to Miller's Stream), north of Old Shoreham. |
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19 April 2010
| 8
April 2010
In the Butterfly Copse, (the Waterworks Road), my first damselfly of the year was spotted amongst the Alexanders. I think this is most likely to be the Azure Damselfly, Coenagrion puella. However, it is surprisingly early for this species. Grid ref: TQ 209 062
The
shape of the hind margin of the pronotum
is diagnostic in blue damselflies.
|
 I think it is more likely an immature blue form Azure Damselfly, Coenagrion puella, given the shape of the pronotum. The pink on the thorax will colour with age. It's a little early, but Azure was out on 19th April last year and 26th the year before. In 2007 when lots of spring species were early, Azure was out on 8th April. Comments
by Dr Pam Taylor
|
A Southern Hawker (dragonfly) flew south down Victoria Road in Shoreham town.
August 2009
 |
Photograph by Alec Trusler |
13-18
August 2009
Southern
Hawkers (dragonfly)
are seen in each of the five days, in ones on the edge of Shoreham town,
over the residential areas of both Shoreham and Southwick.
12
August 2009
At
Annington Sewer and medium-sized orange-brown (and I thought slightly hairy)
dragonfly caught me by surprise as it darted over the stream. It was probably
a Hairy Dragonfly.
A Blue-tailed Damselfly,
Ischnura
elegans, settled.
10
August 2009
A
brown
Common Darter
was seen on Ivy on the Pixie Path.
9 August
2009
A
Southern
Hawker (dragonfly)
was seen over the Waterworks Road,
Old Shoreham.
5 August
2009
One
large dragonfly with a bright blue abdomen cruised over Lancing
Ring dewpond without stopping for at least
15 minutes and probably considerably longer. It did not seem big enough
for an Emperor Dragonfly but
this its most likely identity. The first red Common
Darter (dragonfly)
of the year was also seen resting whilst I was waiting for this large impressive
insect to settle so I could have a closer look.
29
July 2009
Six
Southern
Hawkers (dragonfly)
flew around without stopping in a shaded part of the Coastal-Downs
Link Cyclepath.
23 July 2009
| 14
July 2009
There were two ponds in Tottington Wood. The pond in the photograph at the eastern end hosted a Large Red Damselfly. A Migrant Hawker (dragonfly) was seen in a woodland ride and on the edges of the duckweed covered duck pond at the southern part of the wood, Common Blue Damselflies mated over the Gypsywort-covered edges. |
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2 July 2009
A dragonfly with a multi-patterned abdomen flew amongst the Hawthorn scrub on Mill Hill. It was most likely to be the first Migrant Hawker of the year.
22
June 2009
The
most interesting observations of the day occurred at Annington Sewer where
a large blue dragonfly flew over the stream
and it looked subtly different from a Southern
Hawker and may very well have been a male
Emperor
Dragonfly. Unfortunately, it quickly flew
out of sight. Its display was excelled by a pair of Banded Demoiselles
that danced over the stream for a full ten minutes and probably longer.
They appeared to be courting, but both of the wings had bright blue patches
whereas the female has wings of metallic green. Interestingly there was
a resting emerald green damselfly
of about the same size which may have been a female of the species. There
were a few first of the year
Common Blue
Damselflies,
and
at least one Large
Red Damselfly, Pyrrhosoma
nymphula.
Over
a stream next* to the Coastal-Downs
Link Cyclepath there was another Large
Red Damselfly, Common
Blue Damselflies and one Blue-Tailed Damselfly,
the first seen this year. (*Off the cyclepath through a gap in a locked
gate off the cyclepath from Old Shoreham just before Shoreham Cement Works:
this is a short cut to the River Adur towpath).
19
June 2009
Over
Lancing
Ring dewpond, I spent ten minutes or more
watching three pairs of Broad-bodied
Chasers
(dragonfly),
Libellula
depressa, chasing each other all over
the pond. Occasionally one of them would dip on the surface of the murky
water. On two occasions in-flight mating was observed for about ten seconds,
possibly longer on the first occasion. Over
McIntyre's Field two dragonflies were observed in quick succession, the
first one was brown in colour and thought to be the Hairy
Dragonfly,
Brachytron
pratense, and the second one with
a blue abdomen was probably a Southern
Hawker (although it could have been an
Emperor?).
12
June 2009
On
the Coastal Link Cyclepath just south of the
Toll
Bridge, Old Shoreham, the flying insect fluttering and being blown
about in the breeze was not a butterfly but
a Banded Demoiselle (a damselfly),
Calopteryx
splendens.
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There were at least two Azure Damselflies, Coenagrion puella, at the Annington Sewer, north of Botolphs on the Coastal Link Cyclepath.
9 May
2009
My
first dragonfly of the year flew over Frampton's Field, Old Shoreham. It
had a mostly greenish thorax and abdomen, seen for about two seconds
before it whizzed out of sight. It
was probably a Hairy
Dragonfly,
Brachytron
pratense.
7 May
2009
At
least one Azure
Damselfly,
Coenagrion
puella, and at least one Large
Red Damselfly, Pyrrhosoma
nymphula,
were seen over the verges of the Waterworks
Road.
26
April 2009
The
first of the year Azure
Damselflies,
Coenagrion
puella*, were seen amongst the Stinging
Nettles on Spring Dyke,
north of Old Shoreham. (* The identification
was not positive.)
22 April 2009
17 October 2008
As expected at this time of the year Common Darters were frequently seen on Mill Hill, and occasionally on the outskirts of Shoreham town.
A
Comma
Butterfly and Common
Darter settled on the wooden rail in the Butterfly
Copse next to the Waterworks
Road.
26
September 2008
Common
Darters
were frequently seen over the Coastal Link
Cyclepath.
20
September 2008
A
Southern
Hawker
and
frequent Common Darters were
noted over the Coastal Link Cyclepath.
11
September 2008
A
Southern
Hawker
was
seen by the Ladywells Stream and Coombes Road.
10 September 2008
6
August 20084 August 2008
A handful of Common Darters (dragonflies) were seen at the top of Buckingham Park and a Southern Hawker in the Butterfly Copse (next to the Waterworks Road).
22
-23 July 2008
About
half a dozen Southern Hawkers
were
seen on the downs in the two days from Slonk
Hill Farm to the Waterworks
Road,
with a Common Darter
on Mill Hill.
20
July 2008
The
first Common Darter
(dragonfly) of the year was seen in the Butterfly
Copse next to the Waterworks
Road, Old Shoreham, resting on Common
Bindweed.
17
July 2008
A
Southern
Hawker flew over the
Waterworks
Road, Old Shoreham at a height of about
six metres.
5 July
2008
A
Southern
Hawker flew rapidly along Ham Road, Shoreham by Somerfield supermarket
at a height of about four metres. I estimated its speed at about 12 mph.
30
June 2008
A
large blue dragonfly hawked the Coastal
Link Cyclepath just 50 metres north of the Toll
Bridge, Old Shoreham, and another one flew over Anchor
Bottom. They were almost certainly both Southern
Hawkers.
29
June 2008
A
large blue dragonfly hawked over the southern
part of Buckingham Cutting and this was
thought most likely to be a Southern Hawker.
24
June 2008
Over
the
Lancing Ring dewpond
and a male Broad-bodied Chaser dragonfly
dipped its head on to the surface of the water, and it was accompanied
by a one third longer dragonfly in bright blue which was either the frequently
seen
Southern Hawker,
or the locally scarce Emperor Dragonfly.
Either of the latter two would have been first for the year.
17
June 2008
On
the southern bank of the Slonk Hill Cutting
covered in hundreds of Common Spotted Orchids
and frequent Pyramidal Orchids,
my first Common Darter (dragonfly)
of
the year rested on a herb, followed by a strong-flying female Broad-bodied
Chaser,
Libellula
depressa, over
the scrub hedgerow area on both sides of the path to the west of the spinney.
8 June 2008
4 June 2008
15
May 2008
Scores of Azure Damselflies, Coenagrion puella, flew over Spring Dyke, north of Old Shoreham. Not so much as flying as darting about in the air over the vegetation which contained about 20% Stinging Nettles.
10
May 2008
The
first female
Broad-bodied
Chaser
(dragonfly),
Libellula
depressa, of the year flew
across in front of me at the top of the Pixie
Path. A male and female pair of
Azure
Damselflies, Coenagrion puella, were
also seen on the north-south section of the Pixie Path.
9 May
2008
A
Large
Red Damselfly, Pyrrhosoma
nymphula,
was seen in the scrub of Mill Hill.
But
there was also a puzzling damselfly that eluded the camera on the Pixie
Path. Its body was a dark grey and the wings were misty rather than
veined like the normal blues. It was smaller with a body about the same
size as a Large Red Damselfly.
I originally thought that this could be a female Beautiful
Damselfly Calopteryx
virgo, but I have now rejected this identification.
The female damsel is not as distinctive and colourful as the male with
its vivid blue abdomen.
6 May 2008
Damsels & Dragons 2007 Link
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