Emerald

I'm pretty sure that the last time I went to Grafton Wood, I vowed I'd never go again. I certainly remember moaning about the four-field trudge to get there from the car park, and stating that there simply weren't enough invertebrates to justify the inconvenience. And to be fair, I did have a pretty torrid afternoon, coming home with decent photos of a single Common Darter (which I could equally well have got at home), and not much else.

So when I found myself heading for Grafton again this afternoon, it felt like a triumph of hope over experience. The reason for breaking my vow, and risking getting the same kind of soaking that Hillyblips suffered last week, was the Willow Emerald damselflies that have now appeared in this piece of woodland, having first turned up in the Shire just last year. I did better than HB only in the sense of not getting rained on: two hours of diligent searching didn't turn up a single Willow Emerald. Surprisingly though, I trudged back across the fields to the car feeling pretty upbeat - firstly because I did at least add Common Emerald Damselflies to this year's list, secondly because I knew I had a few nice images of this lovely male, and thirdly because (unlike last year) the wood had been teeming with invertebrates, and in the process of failing to find a Willow Emerald I'd spotted some other very nice mini-beasts.

So there'll be no moaning from me tonight, and what's more, I'll be hiking back across the fields to Grafton Wood for another Willow Emerald hunt at the first available opportunity.