Nice one! I brought one into work a couple weeks ago, and colleagues were amazed how perfect and robust the exoskeleton can be. It's still on the desk A very large dragonfly has been making it's presence known recently--its a real whopper.

congratulations, just damsels here so far :-(

I found a new word--exuvia which is the is the skin left behind in a moult.

Anyway, there are people who are collecting exuvia for research purposes. So once you have shown friends and family you can send them off to the address in the link below and find out what you have breeding, as well as do your bit for biological science.

Also the British dragonfly society has updated its website so there are more pictures, including...exuvias! They want samples from all types, common and uncommon, hawkers, damselflys, darters, dragonflies--the lot. They are very distinctive, so it is almost easier to identify species from them.

Have fun!

Here is a link that might be useful: address to send exuvias to

Good picture Dave.

Thanks for the link Chip... I was able to identify a dragonfly visitor to my pond this morning (I think its a common emperor):

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Can any one tell me the name of this one, the pic doesnt show it has a blue thorax with some spots on its head.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://photobucket.com/albums/a381/mralp2/

perhaps
Libellula depressa - Broad-bodied Chaser from
http://www.dragonflysoc.org.uk/frameset.htm?faq&faq
http://www.dragonflysoc.org.uk/photos/lidepm2.jpg

Kazzie, I forgot, nice shot but what did you do with the rest of its body

Had a beautiful Demoiselle visit my pond, but it flew off before I could get the camera. Apparently they like moving water and I saw a number of mating pairs on a river in South Wimbledon recently. Still no Dragonflies, though.

This is one of the medium sized dragonfly type creatures emerging from the garden. (please note I am now hedging my bets). They are very beautiful, and it's good to see other people's visitors.

Here is a link that might be useful:

That's a beautiful picture.
It's really a privelage to be able to watch them emerge.
Dave

Saw my first of the year today :-)))))))

What an absolutely beautiful picture.. How privileged we are to see such things.
Alison

Yippeeeee....Had two different dragonflies at the same time the other day. Both quite large. One was an orangey colour and the other was yellow and black. Must check the site to see if I can find them....

I had a couple of damsel flies at the weekend. About the first I have spotted. I havent had any dragonflies though.

I found a perfect husk where a dragonfly went from nymph to fly, but as yet i still havent seen one single dragonfly one the wing, and thats odd for here!

Had lots of damselflies.
Don't usually see any Dragonflies here until August.
Sue

Hi AJC--send your husk (or exuvia--what a word!) to the dragonfly people as they are collecting them for their research archives. I bet they would probably tell you what sex and type(see earlier message).

After seeing dragonflys emerge, you can see where they get the idea for Alien!

First coupled pair this morning, on a Sunday too!!!!!

Sunday must be a popular day for dragonfly nookie, I saw another coupled pair today and these were laying. Unless of course its the first pair still at it!!!!!!!!!!!

Saw my first dragonfly of the year today.......not near my ponds but in the woods when I was walking the dog.
No water in the immediate vicinity so don't know what it was doing there!
Have large green or blue dragonflies in this area and last year saw one half green, half blue. (Interbreeding?)
Sue

I've had another visit from a large blue one which swooped around my garden, nabbing insects. That'll teach them to have me for their tea!!

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Nice pictures Sean--I have one of these zooming around in my garden and your pictures prompted me to look it up. Do you reckon it's a male Common Darter?

Yep and its definately male.

You got that close?

yep, even inside the focal range of the camera, the closest shots were blurred.

I just saw the first ones of the summer!

Three red ones like Sean's were sunning on bricks, two blue ones were mating and flying above the pond surface and another massive one with a big green head and blue tail. Think it might have been an emperor.

Blimey what a start!

So far I have seen 3, and that is damned poor, I normaly have 2-3 big hawkers with sight of the ponds, but only seen one of them and one small one, the 3rd I saw at a friends pond, theres normaly more than can be counted around here, so it seems the dragons had a bad year 3 years ago :(

My husband has just come back from inland China. Temperature was around 38C and one day it 'bucketed' it down for about half an hour.
He said after the rain stopped, dragonflies appeared and the number and size of them was just amazing!
Wish I had seen it! :-(
Sue

I wonder if any were chinese emperors??!!