Demoiselles and Ospreys

Continuing my quest for some decent osprey images this week found me once again in Cumbria.The weather had suddenly become very hot with record temperatures for July.It was perfect dragonfly weather so I combined a visit to the ospreys with a visit to a nearby beck which held a good population of the beautiful demoiselle. This stunning damselfly has a very restricted distribution in the North of England and is well worth seeking out at this time of the year.

It was good to see the beck was still occupied by these super looking insects.Despite the attention of horseflies I managed some reasonable images which are shown above.The stunning males look almost tropical as they flit about the bankside vegetation looking for the more sombre brown females.They do at times pose beautifully for the camera and I enjoyed the action at this lovely spot.

It was then on to the location where the ospreys are and I settled down by the lakeside awaiting some action.It was late afternoon before an osprey appeared and it was circling above the lake on the lookout for fish.It didn't catch anything from nearby and soon vanished from sight in it's quest for food.However in the brief time it appeared overhead I did manage some reasonable shots helped by good light from the very warm afternoon sun.I have shown above my best efforts on the day and they are an improvement on previous images.Well pleased I returned on the long journey home but I will be back for more encounters with these very special birds. Thanks for looking in and enjoy the current very summery weather at last.