Tar Lakes, 19 June

4-5 Lesser Emperors in the Tar Lakes complex some looking quite worn. 
Also 1 'Red' Darter but couldn't narrow down to species.

Jeremy Dexter

Lesser Emperor in flight © Jeremy Dexter

Blenheim 19th June

Norfolk Hawker - a male in the same area of the main lake (SP431163) as last year giving fantastic views as it patrolled a small territory, regularly perching on the lakeside vegetation.

Lesser Emperor - a tandem pair ovipositing on the area of the Queen Pool near the Fisheries Cottage, and one other male.

No sign of the Red-veined Darter today.

Gareth Casburn

Norfolk Hawker © Gareth Casburn

Norfolk Hawker in flight © Gareth Casburn

Lesser Emperor tandem pair ovipositing © Gareth Casburn

Lesser Emperor tandem pair ovipositing © Tess W

Video of Lesser Emperor tandem pair ovipositing © Tess W

Radley Lakes, 19 June

3 Lesser Emperor: 2 on Bullfield lake and 1 on a new pool for them at SU5164097309.

Wayne Bull

Radley Lakes 19th June

Mainly Orchard Lake 14:30 to 15:30

Azure Damselfly 20+
Common Blue Damselfly 10+
Red-eyed Damselfly 12+
Emperor Dragonfly 1
Hairy Hawker 1
Black-tailed Skimmer 7
Four-spotted Chaser 4 
Ruddy Darter 2

David Hastings

Red-eyed Damselfly ♂ © David Hastings

Ruddy Darter (imm ♀) © David Hastings

Dry Sandford Pit 19th June

Beautiful Demoiselle 4

Large Red Damselfly 1

Azure Damselfly 1

Common Blue Damselfly 1

Southern Damselfly 9

Broad-bodied Chaser 1

David Hastings

Southern Damselfly ♂ © David Hastings

River Thames downstream from Goring, 19 June

White-legged Damselfly 5+: downstream end of Little Meadow

No sign of any Clubtails over the river or on the bushes.

Remarkable absence of Banded Demoiselle as well - none seen! Has anyone else noticed a lack of this normally numerous species this year?

Stephen Burch

White-legged Damselfly [focus-stacked] © Stephen Burch

White-legged Damselfly [focus-stacked] © Stephen Burch

Whitecross Green Wood, 19 June

(Southern?) Migrant Hawker.  8-10 ( none seen anywhere else) - see note below
Emperor     6 incl. ovipositing
Hairy Dragonfly  One at the westerly pond
Common/Ruddy Darter    10 plus imm. along the rides
Four spot Chaser   7
Large Red Damselfly    1
Common Blue Damselfly    2 at least
Azure Damselfly     30 at least
Blue tailed Damselfly    4
Beautiful Demoiselle     1 male
Banded Demoiselle        1 male
Black tailed Skimmer      3
Broad bodied Chaser   1 fem. Ovipositing
White legged Damselfly   4 along the rides.  

John Edwards

Note John has provided the following description of the 8-10 hawkers he saw in the car park:

"In the car park  were 8-10 hawkers zooming about in a loose group. I initially thought of Southern Migrant Hawker due to their yellow colouring but that number seems not feasible. I then thought Migrant Hawker but surely too early? I have never seen this amount of yellow immatures before, let alone in June.  They did not settle at all and were too fast for a photo of any kind"

Any thoughts anyone?

Ruddy Darter © John Edwards

White-legged Damselfly © John Edwards

Emperor ovipositing © Phil Cruse

Blenheim 18th June

Red-veined Darter - 1 male seen briefly over the water at the north end of the Queen Pool near the Fisheries Cottage. Despite giving it an hour or so, I didn't see it again. A brief view of another pale darter could possibly have been a female but too brief a view and no photos to confirm. I didn't see any other darters.

Lesser Emperor - 1 male seen in the same spot as the darter.

Cothill and Oxford Botanic Gardens, 16 June

Parsonage Moor

Broad-bodied chaser - 1 
Large red damselfly - 1
Azure damselfly - c. 10
Four-spotted chaser - 4
Emperor dragonfly - 2
Hairy dragonfly - 1
Keeled skimmer - 3
Blue-tailed damselfly - 2
Black-tailed skimmer - 1
Southern damselfly - c. 20

Cothill NNR

Black-tailed skimmer - 4
Broad-bodied chaser - 2
Emperor dragonfly - 2
Four-spotted chaser - 1
Hairy dragonfly - 1
Small red damselfly - c. 10
Blue-tailed damselfly - 2
Large red damselfy - 2
Keeled skimmer - 2
Beautiful demoiselle - 1
Lots of azures/common blues

Oxford Botanic Garden

Azure damselfly
Red-eyed damselfly
Small red-eyed damselfly
Blue-tailed damselfly
Broad-bodied chaser
Emperor dragonfly - 2 egg-laying females

Eoin Morris

John Allen Pit, Bishop's Court Farm, Dorchester, 16 June

Lesser Emperor, 2.

A male and female in tandem, harassed by a male Emperor.

Geoff Wyatt 

Oxford Way storm water ponds, Chalgrove - 16th June

This newly created site, serving new housing development to the west of Chalgrove (51.674778, -1.100130; SU623977) yielded:

2 Emperor (male and ovipositing fem)
5 Black-tailed Skimmer (4 male, 1 fem incl mating pair)
1 Broad-bodied Chaser
1 Four-spotted Chaser
3 Azure Damselfly

Peter Law

Broad-bodied Chaser

Emperor (fem)

Black-tailed Skimmers

Four-spotted Chaser

The maturing larger pond - SU 62310 97728

A new second pond

Grove Meadows Storm Water Pond, 16 June

Common Blue Damselfly 
Azure Damselfly
Emperor 1m
Four-spotted Chaser 1
Black-tailed Skimmer 1

Stephen Burch

NB Gate now secured by a padlocked chain

Lockinge, 14 June

Pool by weir:

Azure Damselfly 10-20
Blue-tailed Damselfly 2+
Emperor 1m

Stephen Burch

Whitecross Green Wood, 15th June

2 Lesser Emperor - first site record?
1 Southern Migrant Hawker - teneral male
10+ White-Legged Damselflies

Jeremy Dexter

Southern Migrant Hawker (teneral male) © Jeremy Dexter

A Broughton Garden, 14 June

 

Blue-tailed Damselfly ovipositing © Paul Wyeth

Azure Damselfly (m) © Paul Wyeth

Wroxton Quarry, 13th June

A brief visit to check the pools. Small numbers of Emperor Dragonfly, Black-tailed Skimmer and blue damselflies seen, but no darters. 

The pool that the Red-veined Darters were ovipositing in is drying out rather rapidly.

Day's Lock, Church Farm Backwaters, 14:June

Lesser Emperor 1

Seen patrolling the stream that feeds from the Thames to Church Farm Backwaters, approximately 1km north of Day's Lock.

Geoff Wyatt 

Bicester Wetlands Reserve, 13 June

Bicester Wetland Reserve Dragonfly survey 13 June 2026

Banded Demoiselle 6m 2f
Common Blue Damselfy 21m 3f including 2 pairs in tandem and 1 pair in cop. 
Azure Damselfy 5m
Blue-tailed Damselfy 5m
Red-eyed Damselfy 2m
Emperor 5m
Four-spotted Chaser 4
Broad-bodied Chaser 3m 1 f – female ovipositing 
Black-tailed Skimmer 11m 6f including 4 pair in cop and 2 females ovipositing

Steve Holliday and Gareth Blockley

Whitecross Green Wood 14th June

10:30 to 12:30

Beautiful Demoiselle : 1
Azure Damselfly : 20+
Common Blue Damselfly : 4
Blue-tailed Damselfly : 1
White-legged Damselfly : 8
Emperor Dragonfly: 6
Hairy Hawker : 1
Four-spotted Chaser : 9
Black-tailed Skimmer : 1

David Hastings

White-legged Damselfly ♂ © David Hastings

Four-spotted Chaser ♂ © David Hastings

River Cherwell in University Parks, 8 June

 

Banded Demoiselle (c) James Wainscoat

Otmoor RSPB, 7 June

3 Common blue-tailed damselflies (Ischnura elegans) - 2 males and 1 female
1 Beautiful Demoiselle (Calopteryx virgo) - male
1 Hairy Hawker (Brachytron pratense)
1 Downy Emerald and (Cordulia aenea)
1 Broad-bodied Chaser (Libellula depressa) - female or immature male
At least 3 Ruddy Darters (Sympetrum sanguineum) - all immatures
Azure Damselflies in good numbers.

Eoin Morris

River Thames at Farmoor, 8th June

From Buckthorn Meadow to Pinkhill 14:45 to 16:00

Banded Demoiselle 6
Azure Damselfly 50+
Blue-tailed Damselfly 3
Red-eyed Damselfly 3
Emperor Dragonfly 1 (♀ ovipositing)
Four-spotted Chaser 4
Black-tailed Skimmer 2

David Hastings

Red-eyed Damselfly ♂ © David Hastings

Aston, 7th June

I was surprised to find an immature male Beautiful Demoiselle in my garden in Aston, west Oxon this afternoon.

David Hastings

Immature male Beautiful Demoiselle © David Hastings

 

Boundary Brook Nature Reserve, Oxford, 26 May

Belated news of a first site record:

1 Four-spotted Chaser

Helen Edwards

Lockinge, 2 June

Pool above the small weir SU425877

1 Emperor (m)
1 Blue Damselfly

Stephen Burch

Wroxton College Lakes, 30th May

Both lakes checked but not the stream.

Hairy Dragonfly, 6

Darter sp., 1 adult male seen distantly and briefly 3 times over the large lake. Considering time of year, the national influx and having just found the Wroxton Quarry Red-veined Darters, I think there is a good chance this was another one.

12 species recorded (not including the unidentified darter) with other more common species quite numerous. For example, easily over 1000 Azure and Common Blue Damselflies mostly over the lake surfaces.

Spital Farm Lake, Banbury - 30th May

Hairy Dragonfly, 3 - SP 4707 4041

I think it's now reasonable to assume all suitable habitats in Banbury has this species.

An Abingdon Garden, 30 May

SU 508 983:

1 Beautiful Demoiselle

Mike Flemming

Beautiful Demoiselle © Mike Flemming

Wroxton Quarry 31st May

A couple more images of the Red-veined Darters today.

Wroxton Quarry 31st May

Multiple Odonata twitchers turned out on Sunday morning for yesterday's Red-veined Darters which fortunately obliged under more changeable weather conditions today.

3+ male Red-veined Darters
2 male Black-tailed Skimmers

 

All photos courtesy of Ian Lewington

 

River Thames, Abingdon to Sutton Courtenay, 30 May

Clubtail: At least 4 along the Thames from the Nags Head to Sutton Courtenay

Conor Mackenzie

Abbey Gardens, Abingdon. 29 & 31 May

At the river cut-off/pond SU501972:

1 Downy Emerald - 31 May

1 Clubtail - 29 May (Also two seen by Emma Hunter 14 May)

Martin Green

Clubtail © Martin Green

Otmoor, 28th May

3 Hairy Dragonflies, 
10s Azure Damselflies, 
4 Blue-tailed Damselflies

James Wainscoat

Hairy Dragonfly © James Wainscoat

Wroxton Quarry, 30th May

Red-veined Darters

Three (minimum) seen late morning-lunch time. Initially a pair ovipositing and at the same time a separate male. Later two males seen regularly, which I assume were the same two males seen previously. As they were ovipositing there will hopefully be some more in a couple of weeks (few months!), if the pool doesn't dry out.

Also, a teneral Common Darter seen which seems early.

The pool (SP 40266 41543) can be seen from the public footpath through the site. It is probably best to park in the village and walk across.

Dry Sandford Pit, 29th May

Azure Damselfly 2
Large Red Damselfly 3
Beautiful Demoiselle 1m,3f
Keeled Skimmer 1
Broad-bodied Chaser 1

David Hastings

Keeled Skimmer © David Hastings

Beautiful Demoiselle ♂ © David Hastings

Beautiful Demoiselle ♀ © David Hastings

Barton Pool area, 29th May

Banded Demoiselle 6m,6f
Azure Damselfly 50+
Large Red Damselfly 2
Blue-tailed Damselfly 2
White-legged Damselfly 2

David Hastings

Blue-tailed Damselfly © David Hastings

Banded Demoiselle ♂ © David Hastings

White-legged Damselfly ♀ © David Hastings

Whitecross Green Wood, 27 May

White-legged Damselfly: 20+ - mainly in grass along the rides
Large Red Damselfly: 10+
Blue-tailed Damselfly: 10+
Common Blue/Azure Damselfly: many

Hairy Dragonfly: 2
Emperor Dragonfly: 3
Four-spotted Chaser Dragonfly: 10+
Broad-bodied Chaser Dragonfly: 4

Phil Cruse

White-legged Damselfly © Phil Cruse

Four-spotted Chaser © Phil Cruse

Broad-bodied Chaser © Phil Cruse

Hawker sp. exuvia, probably Emperor © Phil Cruse