Waiting for Rain - April ends

30th April 2017 and it looks like rain after a very long dry spell.

The river is still flowing well and the river banks remain damp and green but elsewhere on the riverside the ground is hardening - although the trees and grasses still have plenty of moisture under the surface.

Lowering clouds are again trapping small flying insects over the water.

It looks like a traditional May Bank Holiday tomorrow - rain...

Here's another photo of the first Beautiful Demoiselle Damselfly showing the wings:

It emerged on 24th April (see previous post) sharing the river environment with many other insects - no shortage of prey.

This was not the first damselfly to appear this month - the first was a Large Red Damselfly observed

on 21st April flying strongly over the river.

The temperature of the water is the key to their emergence rather than the air temperature and with very little rain, leading to the river running more shallow than usual, the water has a chance to warm up in places where meanders slow its pace and the sunlight warms the river bed. We'll probably see fewer pond dragonflies this spring - unless it rains before they dry out.

The spring green banks of the Upper Arun where Orange Tip butterflies are ranging,  blackcaps and chiffchaffs singing and grey herons are hunting frogs.