David Element

Wildlife Photography and Digital Video Images

____________________________________________Dragonflies and Damselflies 3 – Norfolk or Green-eyed Hawkers

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

NORFOLK HAWKER DRAGONFLY Anaciaeschna isoceles (m)

• Until recently, the Norfolk or Green-eyed Hawker Dragonfly Anaciaeschna isoceles (both the spelling and usage of current scientific names are inconsistent!) had always been considered as a significant rarity in Britain, being confined to a small number of suitable fenland sites in East Anglia and just about holding its own (if not actually expanding its range) during a period of sympathetic management. On hot June days these dragonflies are most easily seen patrolling, sometimes flying well above head height. The early flight period does not normally overlap by much with that of the Brown Hawker Aeshna grandis, the only possible confusion species and the green eyes are easy to see when Norfolk Hawkers are in flight. Recently there have been sightings well way from the traditional sites, and there has also been evidence of range-expansion in Southeast England with annual sightings at the WWT London Wetlands Centre (where these photographs were taken) confirming that the dragonfly has become established there as a breeding species. The pioneer arrivals had been reported on social media by the sharp-eyed Penny Smallshire, and a more recent communication with her in 2024 indicated that sixteen male Norfolk Hawkers had been recorded as patrolling in a single transect there. These sightings, at previously uncolonized locations, could either be due to natural range expansion of the native population (this seems unlikely) or to influxes of these insects from the Continent. In East Anglia there has been a strong association between this dragonfly and Water Soldier Stratiotes aloides, the architecture of which affords excellent protection for the larval stages of dragonflies. The fact that the new colonisations have been at sites where this plant is absent supports the concept that the new colonies may have been established by Continental immigrants, and that also leads to a potentially interesting scenario regarding what might happen if interbreeding occurs with the formerly isolated British population (i.e., will their offspring still have this Water Soldier association). It will be of interest to see if these insects will continue to expand their range in response to the warmer temperatures associated with anthropogenic climate change, the probable cause of this sudden formation of the new British colonies. This could jeopardise the genetic integrity of the formerly isolated British populations, but interbreeding would ultimately give the species a much better chance of survival in the UK at sites where Water Soldier is absent by expanding the gene pool. One photograph has been cropped.

· David’s short film of Norfolk Hawker Dragonflies in action may be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GONURnPANAo.

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