I've been counting dragonflies and frogs this week. I noted
eight dragonflies over three days and all of them were southern hawkers. They have
emerged almost one month later this year and it is still a wonder to me how
they synchronise the event.
The frogs I have seen have all been immature adults of about
two thirds of normal size. Don’t know what has happened to all the adults but
judging by the lack of frogspawn this year something pretty calamitous. Let's hope
there are more breeding pairs next year.
There is something magical about dragonflies. In part it is the
mythical name but also its transformation from an initial aquatic state to that
of air. It is a natural form of the
mythical 'alchemy' where something base is made to become precious. It is one
of the most visible of the summer insect emergences and as it happens around
water it is relatively easy to locate them and it lasts for many hours. I have
never seen a butterfly emerge from its pupal case; have you, and where would you
even look to find one? Nature is a force that captures innocence or rekindles
it; even if that innocence is the birth of the most fearsome insect predator
flying the July skies.
