Downy Emerald

Key Sites: Downy Emerald have only been recorded at one site, Yardley Chase in 1995 and 2006. The first record was a single male, while the 2006 records include many males, copulation and oviposting. Larvae we found during pond dipping in April 2007. These are expected to emerge as adults in 2009.

Please note that Yardley Chase is a private site with no public access.

Spotting: This dragonfly is very difficult to recognise in flight and is easily confused with the Four-spotted Chaser--at Yardley both species exist together and have the same flight period. The bright apple-green eyes and green-brown metallic sheen to the abdomen and thorax are the key distinguishing characteristics to look for. In flight, Downy Emerald move very quickly, with bouts of hovering. They rarely land, unlike the Four-spotted Chaser.

Downy Emerald live in secluded woodland ponds or parkland, where the pond is surrounded by trees. The leaf litter provides the larval habitat, and (at other sites!), larvae have been found clinging upside-down between the leaves at the bottom of the pond. All woodlands or parklands (including the many country estates in Northants) with sunny ponds (such as Salcey Forest) should be studied for evidence of this species.

County Status: Breeding was confirmed in April 2007 when larvae were found during pond dipping. This follows oviposting recorded by Jeff Blincow and Doug Goddard in 2006. We await reports from Yardley Chase during 2007 with great interest.

A key County species.