by Denis O'Regan
Build it and they will come
We are so privileged to have an acre field behind our house. It has been through several stages including home to six rare-breed sheep, chickens (which can no long range free) and grazing for calves. However for the past five years the field has not been touched and it has been let go wild. At first swathes of thistles and nettles dominated but after a couple of years the field began to find it's own balance.
In order to create more biodiversity the building of a pond was always in the plan. So this project finally got going and it was delightful to observe within minutes of adding the water four Pied Wagtails came down to inspect it. No fish are planned (as they eat everything and soil the water) and the next day the first visit from a dragonfly was spotted. A couple of days later three Emperor Dragonfly visited and began laying eggs on the pond plants and barley straw used to help control the growth of algae.
With a little patience I managed to take this stunning photo and video...
Emperor Dragonfly or Blue Emperor (Anax imperator)
Close up of the Dragonfly's head