Magical Metamorphosis

Just spent ages typing about all the excitement of finding this southern hawker emerging from its nympth state on one of the reeds in the pond when the boffins started working and I have to start all over again. never mind I'll keepit short this time. Thank goodness I hear you say, less to read.( and thanks Boffins you really do make this site wonderful )

Okay , here goes, today we witnessed one of nature's miracles , missed the actual full metamorphosis but went out to the pond just as the adult dragonfly was hanging on to the skin it had just shed. Still very exciting, mad dash to the house for the camera , macro lens and tripod. Trust this to be the time when my favourite 70-300mm lens was broken , had to make do with the 60mm lens , so nothing for it but to put on the welly boots and get into the pond ,complete with said tripod , set up eyeball to eyeball with exhausted dragonfly.

Got lots of shots of the dragonfly complete with shimmering wings but thought I'd share this one with the dragonfly still hanging on to the head / shoulders of the exuvia.Should have said I was mistaken the other day , seems the shot I put up shows an empty skin.
Try looking at LARGE if you have time.

Tomorrow Ill be on pond watch in case another nympth emerges so I can witness the full thing. WOW !