Sympetrum pedemontanum - Banded Darter

The Sympetrum pedemontanum - Banded Darter is one of the species that I try to photograph almost every year. With the hope of better photos every year. This year I visited a different place with the hope of better light than the places I have been in other years. Unfortunately the entire field had recently been mowed and there was little vegetation left. The advantage of this was that there were a few fresh green blades that had just emerged with a banded darter on them. By the time the sun went down, small droplets formed at the tips of the blades of grass. A little bit of light also came through from the red clouds between the trees in the background, which gives the photo a little more color. I don't know if the result below is better than what I had, but it is a nice fresh picture, if I say so myself:)

Sympetrum pedemontanum - Banded Darter
Sympetrum pedemontanum - Banded Darter




Crocothemis erythraea - Broad Scarlet

On August 14 I went looking for dragonflies in the Weerribben. At first I wanted to photograph the Sympetrum depressiusculum - Spotted Darter. After a few minutes of searching I found a few of this species, but unfortunately they were all in difficult places to take a nice photo. After walking around some more I also found a few sleeping Crocothemis erythraea - Broad Scarlet, one of which was quite nice. This is what it became and after a lot of fiddling I took the photo below

Crocothemis erythraea - Broad Scarlet
Crocothemis erythraea - Broad Scarlet




Summer holidays – July 8 / August 5

It seems like forever ago, but a few months ago I went on summer vacation. We went out with the family for exactly four weeks, first two weeks in France and then two weeks driving around Italy.

In France we stayed in a house on a nice campsite right on the Ardeche river. The area is beautiful and in the past I have photographed several nice dragonflies in the same area. Unfortunately, there were very few dragonflies to be found this year. There were some broad-shinned damselflies and small tang dragonflies, but no really nice species to spend a lot of time on on holiday.

Family with a view over Ardeche
Family with a view over Ardeche

Half an hour's drive from the campsite I managed to find a nice field where I had found piles of Fritillaries a few years ago. So I set my alarm to take a look here on time. Once we arrived, to my surprise, there was no Fritillary butterfly to be found. Due to the lack of other species, I spent some time taking a good photo of an open Polyommatus icarus - Common Blue. Fortunately, it worked in the end, and I finally have a really sharp photo of a beautiful fresh blue. The rest of our stay in France was wonderful, but I didn't bother to grab my camera anymore.

Polyommatus icarus - Common Blue
Polyommatus icarus - Common Blue

We then drove on to Italy. Just across the border, on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, we find a nice place to stay for a few days. Here too I don't touch my camera, and I don't get much further than the beach and cozy restaurants.

After three days it is time to move on again, this time to a butterfly destination. The intention is to find the Boloria graeca - Balkan Fritillary in the Italian/French Alps. A few years ago I also attempted to find this butterfly, but without success. After we have found a nice hotel in the area of ​​Cuneo, we go into the mountains with the whole family so that I can see where I have to go the next morning. Once we leave the main road we arrive at a very small and narrow road. With still seven kilometers to go to the place where I expect to find the Boloria graeca - Balkan Fritillary, the family has had enough, and to be honest, this is not my favorite road either. Without having seen any butterflies we go back to the hotel, once we arrive it starts raining and thundering like crazy. It doesn't look good, but since we're only staying one night, I set my alarm for the next morning.

Mountains in the area of ​​Cuneo - Italy
Mountains in the area of ​​Cuneo - Italy

I wake up around three o'clock in the morning, and because I can't sleep anymore, I go out. The advantage of leaving so early is that I don't encounter any oncoming traffic on the way up. Along the way, the last seven kilometers of the road appear to become even narrower, but eventually I arrive safely. I try to sleep a bit in the car until it gets light and then I go looking. After a fairly long search, just before the sun starts to shine, I find the first Balkan fritillary butterfly. And suddenly I find about eight butterflies within a radius of about ten meters. I quickly take some pictures before the sun comes out. Fifteen minutes later it is already so warm that all the butterflies start to fly. But that doesn't matter, we finally found a new species!

Boloria graeca - Balkan Fritillary
Boloria graeca - Balkan Fritillary

Once back at the hotel I eat my breakfast and then we pack again to continue. The plan was actually to go further north, but because the children probably don't like that as much and the weather is not great, we head south-east to look for a spot in the north of Tuscany. We spend the night in a beautiful spot in a converted farm among the fields. It's also chock full of butterflies, but it's nothing special and I can't bring myself to go out early. Because I really want to see some nice butterflies, I'm going to Switzerland on my own for a day and a half. I arrive in the afternoon with perfect weather, and now hope to find the Erebia flavofasciata - Yellow Banded Ringlet. I've been chasing every Erebia all afternoon to see if it's the right kind, but without success. At the end of the day I quickly take a photo of a Shepherd's fritillary - Boloria pales and then it's time for a pizza. After dinner I look for a room so I can sleep decently, but unfortunately that is way too expensive for me so I just sleep on top of the mountain in the car...

Shepherd's fritillary - Boloria pales
Shepherd's fritillary - Boloria pales

The next morning I hope to find a sleeping Melitaea asteria - Little Fritillary. I walk down the sloping slopes for about four hours, but I don't encounter more than a few sleeping Shepherd's fritillary - Boloria pales. If the temperature gets too high, I first have a cup of coffee on top of the pass between the cows and then I give it another try at the Erebias. A few hours later and at least fifty Erebias later, I still haven't found the right kind. Because I can't find what I'm looking for at all, I give up and get back in the car to my family.

Me with a beautiful Alpine cow
Me with a beautiful Alpine cow

Because we are in such a lovely spot, we will stay in northern Tuscany for the next few days. Even though there are butterflies flying everywhere, it is mainly relaxing. If we have a somewhat drizzly start to the day, I look around the area and find a resting Cacyreus marshalli - Geranium Bronze. For me, this is really one of those butterflies that I often see flying but never get around to taking a photo of. After this small success the rest of the photos are finished. We stay another day and then pack up again to drive towards Lake Como.

Cacyreus marshalli - Geranium Bronze
Cacyreus marshalli - Geranium Bronze

We met up with friends at Lake Como and stayed for two pleasant days. We finally sleep in our tent. It's no longer about butterflies. If we really have to go home after these two days, we will make a nice trip through Switzerland so that I can show my family where I always look for butterflies, and finally we drive on to get home around midnight. What a wonderful holiday again...



Winter picture

Last Saturday it was cold enough for the first time that there was a chance of frost. Since the chance of fog was also high, I of course had to look for winter damselflies. So we drove north in the dark in time to look for Sympecma paedisca - Siberian Winter Damsel. Once at my destination I quickly found a number of damselflies. Some have crawled deep, others higher in the vegetation and beautifully covered with frost. I liked the one best that hung on a twig with a beautifully frosted leaf. So I took the necessary photos, but due to the rapidly rising clouds, only the first few photos have nice color. Even though the photo was taken from quite a distance and the damsel is very small in the photo, I still think it turned out to be a beautiful picture that nicely shows how this damsel spends the winter.

Sympecma paedisca - Siberian Winter Damsel
Sympecma paedisca - Siberian Winter Damsel




Tour of Germany, Austria and Liechtenstein

From June 22 to 25 I made another short tour through Europe with Jordi and my father-in-law. Luckily I had Wednesday off and for once there was no need to rush. Around half past four in the afternoon I said goodbye to the family and picked everyone up to leave. Our first destination is southern Germany where we hope to photograph the Nehalennia speciosa - Pygmy Damselfly. Despite all the road works in Germany, it is, as always, a pleasant ride and we arrive at our destination around half past one in the morning. We stretch our legs for another half hour and have a beer and then sleep in the car for about two hours.

After a short night it is a bit difficult to wake up, but we soon walk towards the Dwarf Damselfly spot. Since we have been here before, it doesn't take much searching and after 15 minutes we have already found the first copies. It is a bit too warm for anything nice, so the damselflies quickly turn away when they notice you, but otherwise it is a beautiful morning. Once the sun is above the horizon we don't have much time to take pictures because it heats up very quickly and the damselflies immediately start flying. I take the most beautiful photo at the very first ray of sunshine, three photos later the light is already too harsh for my taste and I'm done with it.

Nehalennia speciosa - Pygmy Damselfly
Nehalennia speciosa - Pygmy Damselfly

A little later we walk back to the car to go to the next place. We are right on time and the weather is beautifully warm, so we decide to look for the Coenagrion hylas - Siberian Bluet for the umpteenth time. As far as I know, this damselfly can only be found in warm, dry weather, and then during the afternoon. The rest of the time they hide between the trees on higher ground. So everything looks good for us, and in good spirits we make a beautiful drive of about three hours towards Austria. Once they have arrived, the Siberian damselflies are already flying, everything seems great, but getting a nice photo of a damselfly is a completely different story. It is now about 30 degrees and the damsels do not want to sit still at all. For a few hours we alternate watching flying damselflies in the blazing sun with resting in the shade. When I'm almost fed up, I finally find a mating couple who gives me the chance to take a few pictures. After all those attempts, finally a sharp photo of both the male and the female.

Coenagrion hylas - Siberian Bluet
Coenagrion hylas - Siberian Bluet

We use the second half of the afternoon to look for the Cordulegaster bidentata. We have a spot in the area where this dragonfly should be found, but after a few hours of walking and searching we unfortunately found nothing. After this failed search I actually planned to drive to Switzerland, but because the weather there is crappy we go back to the Nehalennia speciosa - Pygmy Damselfly spot in Germany. Unfortunately, this means that we spend another three hours in the car, which is not easy after such a short night and so much effort. So the result is that I'm driving around with 2 snoring guys in the car. When we finally get back to Germany we decide not to sleep in the car and book a cheap hotel. We take our time for a nice dinner and something to drink and then have a good night's sleep.

sleepy people
sleepy people

Just like the previous morning, we are already on time at the Nehalennia speciosa - Pygmy Damselfly. The weather is fine again, but it is not possible to take a better photo than the day before. Anyway, it's always wonderful to be in such a beautiful place. After the miss we first go back to the hotel for breakfast and sleep for another hour. Because the weather is not good anywhere else, we decide to go to Lichtenstein to look for the Coenonympha oedippus - False Ringlet. Halfway through our ride I also have a spot for the Southern Bronze Dragonfly where we first take a look. The spot is great, exactly like the book, and we also find two larvae skins, but unfortunately there is no dragonfly to be seen. A little disappointed, we walk back to the car and continue towards the Coenonympha oedippus - False Ringlet. Once we arrive at our destination, we quickly find some Golden-eyed Haybirds, but it is above 30 degrees and there is simply no point in running after the butterflies. We hang out in the shade of a tree for a while, then we do a quick search, but it remains too hot. The only photo I manage to take is of an egg that a passing Coenonympha oedippus - False Ringlet lays on a blade of grass in front of my nose. We decide to have a drink in the area until it starts to cool down a bit. We come back at the end of the day, but now it is already too late and all the butterflies have already hidden again. We quickly stop and look for a parking spot where we sleep in the car again.

Egg of the Coenonympha oedippus - False Ringlet
Egg of the Coenonympha oedippus - False Ringlet

The next morning we drive by the Coenonympha oedippus - False Ringlet for a while, but we see nothing and quickly leave again. We look at some other places in the area, but there are actually no butterflies to be found, so we go back home. We soon find ourselves in a rain shower that will not stop until we are back in the Netherlands.

All in all, quite a lot of work and energy for a handful of photos, but as always we enjoyed it!



Lycaena hippothoes - Purple-edged Copper

After the mediocre result with the Blue Fire Butterfly, I tried my luck with the Lycaena hippothoes - Purple-edged Copper. Around eight o'clock I and Jordi drove back to Germany to spend the night near the Red Fire Butterfly. This time we slept in the car again.

After a not very good night we start looking for butterflies in time. But as is often the case, it is just a little too cloudy. This time the weather forecast was not optimal, but we had no other option. After quite a long search we find a few sleeping Red Fire Butterflies and a few Coenonympha arcania - Pearly Heath. Most of the butterflies are not in a good position for the photo and it soon starts to get warm and the butterflies start to fly. If a male sits down to warm himself in the first sun, I still take a reasonable photo, not special but always beautiful, a fresh Lycaena hippothoes - Purple-edged Copper.

Lycaena hippothoes - Purple-edged Copper
Lycaena hippothoes - Purple-edged Copper

After taking a few photos, the butterflies start flying around and there is no point in taking photos anymore. Because we are still on time, we also take a look at a place with Boloria eunomia - Bog Fritillary. We manage to find about ten fresh butterflies quite easily and due to the changeable weather they are not very busy. The disadvantage is that we don't have nice sunshine. I take some pictures without inspiration, and unfortunately it doesn't get any better than this.

Boloria eunomia - Bog Fritillary
Boloria eunomia - Bog Fritillary

When we walk back to the car, I quickly take a photo of a Cupido minimus - Small Blue and a Polyommatus semiargus - Mazarine Blue and then it's over. A few hours later I am relaxing in the garden again.



Lycaena helle - Violet Copper

Blue Fire Butterflies - Lycaena helle are, in my opinion, the most beautiful butterflies we have in Europe, besides the Violet Fire Butterflies. And so, like almost every year, I drove to the Eifel again on May 28 in search of these beautiful butterflies. It's a bit difficult to explain, but the bottom line is that I'd rather sleep in the car for a night than have to get out of bed super early, so I'm with Jordi and my father-in-law around 8 p.m. :00 drove towards Germany. After about three hours of driving we park on the side of a small country road, drink a few beers and an hour later we go to sleep (in the car).

Lycaena helle - Violet Copper
Lycaena helle - Violet Copper

The next day around half past six the alarm goes off and our search begins. After a fairly long search we find a few sleeping Lycaena helle - Violet Copper, but they are all already quite worn out. When the sun is a little higher later and it gets warmer quickly, more butterflies can be found. However, most butterflies are already quite old and it is difficult to find a nice, fresh specimen. Of course I eventually get a nice animal in the picture, but like all years, the weather is not entirely to my liking.

Another chance next year!



Pyrgus malvae - Grizzled Skipper and more

Some time ago, May 21, I went out again to take photos. This time the plan was to look for Pyrgus malvae - Grizzled Skipper in the North of the country. After a nice drive and half an hour of walking we found a field bursting with Pyrgus malvae - Grizzled Skipper. I had hoped for a field of flowers, but all the butterflies were on blades of grass between the rushes and the like. Fortunately, the sun was able to add a little color to the whole. Also because it was bursting with midges (small gadflies), I finished photographing these butterflies fairly quickly.

Pyrgus malvae - Grizzled Skipper
Pyrgus malvae - Grizzled Skipper

While walking we had already come across several sleeping dragonflies, so that was the next topic. There were a striking number of Northern white-faced dragonflies, and of course Libellula quadrimaculata - Four spotted Chaser. In my opinion, not the most exciting species to take a photo of, but fortunately I also found a beautiful fresh Anax imperator - Blue Emperor. Photographing was still a drama due to the large number of midges, but as the sun became brighter, the midges disappeared and the background of my photo was beautifully illuminated, which completes the picture in my opinion.

Anax imperator - Blue Emperor
Anax imperator - Blue Emperor

After this success, the sky soon clouds over and the sun is gone again. I quickly take some standard pictures of two Leucorrhinia rubicunda - Ruby Whiteface, then we decide to go back to the car, itchy from the mosquito bites.

Because it is still quite early, we will also look for the Leucorrhinia caudalis - Lilypad Whiteface. I've never seen this species before so it would be nice to finally find one. Once we arrive at the right place, we quickly find one. Most of these dragonflies are just emerging. A disadvantage of this is that after emerging they immediately fly high into the trees. In the end I managed to make a nice picture, and thus a new species for my website.

Leucorrhinia caudalis - Lilypad Whiteface
Leucorrhinia caudalis - Lilypad Whiteface

After this successful morning it was nice and we drove quietly back home.

(Two days later I'm still itching)



Weerribben three times

In the past two or three weeks I have already driven to the Weerribben about three times. It is always wonderful if you are in the right place at the peak of the dragonflies' emergence. This time I was just too early twice and just too late the last time. But even though I was a bit late the last time, I still managed to take a nice photo of a Libellula fulva - Scarce Chaser. The sun broke through the clouds early in the morning, which just completed the photo. Now just wait for better weather and butterflies.

Libellula fulva - Scarce Chaser
Libellula fulva - Scarce Chaser




Finally a bit of winter

Yesterday it was finally winter again and it froze a few degrees in the evening. All the more reason to finally go out again and look for Sympecma paedisca - Siberian Winter Damsel. After half an hour of searching, we luckily managed to find a damsel. As always, the lady did not fit as well as hoped, and there was little I could do with the rising sun. But fortunately the little lady was hanging freely and had a large snowflake on its head. In my opinion at least a nice winter picture.

Sympecma paedisca - Siberian Winter Damsel
Sympecma paedisca - Siberian Winter Damsel