Downy Emerald and Variable Damselfly on the Shropshire meres

I was lucky enough to visit one of the privately owned meres south of Shrewsbury yesterday with a couple of photographers. There we saw a good number of Variable Damselflies which were snapped by Jim Almond in this great shot below. This is a rare species in Shropshire, though may well be the victim of under recording due to the similarity in appearance to Azure Damselfly. The male below is showing the classic broken shoulder stripes often described as Dracula's dripping fangs- though sadly specimens aren't always so 'textbook' hence the name 'variable'!

Also captured by Jim were some fabulous Downy Emerald Dragonflies- again a local rarity, but always worth bearing in mind at neutral or acidic sights near woodland. The club-shaped abdomen is really quite distinctive in flight. A beautiful insect.