Don’t miss Whisby’s dragonfly displays

BY RACHEL SHAW

LINCOLNSHIRE WILDLIFE TRUST

THE rain was beating on the roof above our heads. Outside our small wooden shelter, there was a wall of rain. It felt like we were looking out from behind a waterfall. The thunder cracked and we waited.

This was the designated ‘Dragonfly Day’ at Whisby Nature Park. It’s the perennial problem of event planning, you can never plan the weather and this day was one of those wet days of July. The rain was welcome, but why on this day when we’d hoped to show visitors the wondrous insects that are the dragonflies and damselflies?

In the calm between the heavy showers, the visitors didn’t appear but the dragonflies and damselflies did. Delicate blue damselflies fluttered out of the pathside vegetation. The sunlight flickered on their transparent wings creating a vision that could have sparked a belief in fairies.

A bold black-tailed skimmer dashed across the surface of the lake. The dark clouds of the next rainstorm reflected on the water as the dragonfly switched directions as he hunted his smaller insect prey. This scene could have dated back over millennia.

Dragonflies evolved over 300 million years ago. The earliest ancestors of the dragonflies we see today shared the landscape with early amphibians and the first reptiles. Flowering plants hadn’t evolved yet and it would be nearly 100 million years before the dinosaurs appeared.

They weren’t just amongst the first ever winged insects, they were the largest. Some had wingspans of 75 cm. Like our modern-day dragonflies, these huge insects were formidable predators with large jaws and spiny front limbs for catching prey. Like our dragonflies, they began life underwater. As the rain started to fall again, we retreated back to our shelter. Here, we had gathered together a collection of dragonfly exuviae. These are the discarded outer skins of the young dragonflies. They leave their underwater existence by climbing up a plant stem. They cling on and crack open their outer skin along the back. The fresh adult dragonfly complete with wings emerges. This is when they are at their most vulnerable. They can’t fly until their wings and body harden.

The adult, flying stage of their lives is short in comparison to the aquatic stage which can last for four or five years. Looking carefully on the exuviae it’s possible to get a slight insight into how terrifying these underwater dragons are to any small aquatic creatures.

Their jaws are extraordinary. Dragonfly larvae have an unusual way of catching their prey. Their lower jaw is flexible and equipped with sharp teeth. It’s also extendable. When prey swims past, the lower jaw shoots out with lightning speed and catches the prey. It’s more reminiscent of the alien in the eponymous movies than of fairies. To add to their ferocious mystic, they also use jet propulsion to move around – by rapidly expelling water through their bottoms!

If you missed the designated ‘Dragonfly Day’ at Whisby Nature Park, as most people did, you can see dragonflies and their dainty cousins the damselflies every day through until late September and possibly early October.

Whisby Nature Park is one of the best places for seeing these remarkable insects and is designated a Dragonfly Hotspot by the British Dragonfly Society.

Green Flags for city parks

THREE Lincoln parks are raising the prestigious Green Flag Award. The news that the Arboretum, Boultham Park and Hartsholme Country Park have achieved the accreditation - the international quality mark - is testament to the hard work and dedication of the teams that care for these green spaces so that everyone can enjoy them, according to City of Lincoln Council.

Boultham Park also achieved the Green Heritage Site Accreditation, supported by Historic England, for its historic features.

Cllr Bob Bushell, Portfolio Holder for Remarkable Place said: “I’d like to take this opportunity to thank our dedicated staff and volunteers who work tirelessly to ensure our parks and green spaces are kept to such a high standard. This award really is testament to the hard work that goes into green spaces in the city.”