Black-tailed Skimmer

Another dragonfly post I am afraid. This time of year does see the `disappearance` of birds as they start their moult after the wearing business of breeding and so I am only really on the look out for insects when I go anywhere. There have been very few butterflies of any note so far this year, this may change, but I have seen a few dragonflies with the Black-tailed Skimmer being another species in good numbers at my local gravel pits at Maxey.

The photos below show the male form of this skimmer. The blue abdomen with a black tip has yellow spots along the side, the female has a yellow abdomen with two prominent longitudinal black bands on the upper surface. Males of this species can have territories of over 50metres and can be very aggressive towards other males, indeed I saw the individual pictured `chase` at least one other Black-tailed Skimmer, a couple of Four-spotted Chasers and even an Emperor! A dragonfly that is normally on the wing until early August.