h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Dragon and Damselflies are surely one of the highlights of summer!
They provide hours of amusement as they flit around glinting in the sun. I was lucky enough to rescue one last summer and placed it in a bush after finding it half drowned in a pond near me, it dried itself off and flew away. I am lucky as the pond is in an enclosed area protected from dogs, rubbish and dumping, hence polution. The pond was really a by product of setting up a bird sanctuary but is ideal for Dragonfly, Damselfly and assorted creatures that like water. I often sit by the pond and listen to the creatures buzz around in the air and in another place a massive Dragonfly passed inches from my face making me jump, not from fear of these harmless creatures but due to the shear size of it!
The pond I visit seems ideal as fairly shallow, clean and with reeds around edge which Dragon and Damsels seem to like being around. Perhaps they enjoy the uninterrupted peace and quiet too, as I do. Certainly sunshine is important in summer but where would we be without ponds and creatures flying around!

Thank you SS. Once again you are so lucky to have places like that nearby.

They are such enchanting creatures, and you are right some of them are big!

i must nip off and put a PS on my badger/bird thread. You have just reminded me. Thank you.

Websailor

Yay, my first dragonfly of the year!
.
I was checking the small pond at end of nature reserve for Dragonflies and was disapointed as non there and weather had been quite hot. I had given up and walked around corner and saw a brown Dragonfly with bulging eyes fly past, Ok it wasn't as big as some but it was still a Dragongfly! I then saw electric blue Damselflies so all is right with the world!

Hello again Websailor! A very nice article. Over here we have 160 (known) species of dragonflies and damselflies! Here at home we often have dragonflies hovering around the swimming pool. Right at the moment this pool of ours is very close to being a 'natural feature' and is teeming with algae and invertebrate life. But anyways I see lots of dragonflies out in the wild as well. Over here at least I think humans have made MORE pools than there used to be. Every farm has its own dam (or few) and wildlife reserves all have several waterholes ... all of which are made excellent use of by dragonflies and damselflies. I've seen a great many different species ... orange ones, blue ones, and one of my favourites has a black body with transparent wings with black tips. When it flies it looks like three black insects flying in formation! Also ... you see them year round here. It's now almost winter and I've seen several dragonflies of different species just last week on a pond!

Hi, Willem,

Thanks for the kind comments.

I am so sorry not to have replied to your emails, but I want to do them when I have time, and RL has been a bit of a bind this last couple of weeks. I think I am seeing the light at at the end of the tunnel, just, and hope to have more time.

Back later if I get everything that I should do.

Websailor