15th May 2016. Day of the Demoiselles

A year ago today I saw the first Marsh fritillary of 2015 sunning itself on the brambles at the bottom of the third field, so I decide to walk down there and see if anything's doing. I'm not too hopeful after the last couple of days, which have been unrelentingly grim and wet, but today things look a little more hopeful, and in the distance, I can even see some blue sky.

Marsh fritillary is not a butterfly that flies except in full sun, and as expected there's not much going on. With every step among the tussocks of the Culm grassland, dozens of swift little spiders scurry for cover, but that's about all. 

No sign of Marsh Fritillaries yet

After an hour of fruitless searching I have nothing to show for it except very wet jeans and I decide to walk down to where the River Torridge crosses the reserve. It's another three fields down, and just before I reach the woodland that runs along the river, the blue sky that I saw earlier reaches me and the sun finally breaks through.

There's a lovely little Common Dog Violet  (Viola Riviniana) nestled into the hedge that marks the edge of the wood. It's the foodplant for the Small Pearl Bordered Fritillary, and even though I've never seen one here, I live in hope!

Common Dog Violet (Viola Riviniana)

The planks that serve as a bridge across the marshy patch that leads to the river are surrounded by a mass of Hemlock Water-dropwort (Oenanthe crocata). It's one of our most poisonous plants but the leaves look disconcertingly like flat leaved parsley, and the plant smells of parsley too.

It's on these that my eye is drawn to a jewel-like green flash. It's a damselfly- either Banded Demoiselle (Calopteryx Splendens) or Beautiful Demoiselle (Calopteryx virgo). The females are very similar and there are no males around so I can't be certain which it is- both species can fly here at Volehouse. I get a photograph and resolve to come back another day to try and see a male which may help clear up the mystery.

A female Demoiselle damselfly. But which one?