Dragonflies of La Brenne & Vienne Naturetrek Tour Report 22 - 29 June 2011 Yellow-spotted Emerald, Somatochlora flavomaculata Report and image compiled by Nick Ransdale Naturetrek Cheriton Mill Cheriton Alresford Hampshire SO24 0NG England T: +44 (0)1962 733051 F: +44 (0)1962 736426 E: [email protected] W: www.naturetrek.co.uk Tour Report Dragonflies of La Brenne & Vienne Tour leader: Nick Ransdale Participants: Vaughan Patterson Hilary Lawton Chris Benson Margaret Clayton Terry Clayton Summary This two-centre holiday in central-western France gave us an excellent insight into both the dragonfly fauna and abundant butterflies, birds and other wildlife of the region. After spending the first two days in the Vienne, we visited the myriad ponds of the Pinail Nature Reserve on our way to Bellebouche, where we spent three days in the Brenne, 'land of a thousand lakes'. This wide range of sites and habitats yielded a final total of 35 species of dragonflies, 40 species of butterflies, and 136 bird species, not to mention a wide range of other animals and plants, that the combined talents of the group helped to find and identify. The weather ranged from a cool 18°C on Day 2 to a sizzling 40°C plus on Day 6, curtailing walking (and odonata) activity somewhat! However, as the Brenne was a new area for all but one participant, we also took refuge in several of the newer bird hides that now grace the Brenne, enjoying great views of some of the Brennes' special birds. Day 1 Wednesday 22nd June Cool, sunny, 20°C The train from Paris arrived on time at Poitiers, at 16.53, where we all met up except for Hilary, who was meeting us at the hotel in Montmorillon. The journey from Poitiers city centre to the Hotel de France, Montmorillon was uneventful, as we managed to miss the worst of the Poitiers rush hour, arriving at 18.00. With plenty of time to freshen up, we dined at 19.30 and discussed our program for the coming week. After a delicious meal in the newly refurbished restaurant, an early night was taken after the days travelling through northern France. Day 2 Thursday 23rd June Cool, total cloud cover, a brief shower, seldom above 18°C After a very filling buffet breakfast, we did our first brief shop at the supermarket, and then headed straight on to an etang in the commune of Persac. Etangs are man-made lakes which may vary greatly in size, but are usually fished either commercially or for pleasure – course fishing; the 'target species' nearly always carp. The weather was gloomy and threatening, but generally dry, if a little too cool for much odonata activity. However, with patience we gradually picked up species, missing only those real sun-lovers; mainly the skimmers and chasers. Our first Banded Demoiselles, Calopteryx splendens, a single Willow Emerald Damselfly, Chalcolestes viridis, lots of Small Red Damselflies, Ceriagrion tenellum, many Blue-tailed Damselflies, Ischnura elegans, and several White-tailed Skimmers, Orthetrum albistylum. This last species doesn't occur in UK, and mature males can be tricky to differentiate from Black-tailed Skimmer, Orthetrum cancellatum; both are generally common here. © Naturetrek August 11 1 Dragonflies of La Brenne & Vienne Tour Report After lunch here, we moved on to an old disused gravel pit, the weather still decidedly threatening and overcast, although one or two brief breaks in the cloud proved fruitful. A delighted Margaret found Hare's-foot Clover, Trifolium arvense, amongst many other plants on this site, and a two minute sunny spell provided our first Green- eyed Hooktail, Onychogomphus forcipatus, a splendid male. Our last odonata stop of the day was at a ford crossing a stream back in Persac commune. Here some of us saw our first Goblet-marked Damselfly, Erythromma lindenii, although we all saw them the next day. Finally, we stopped at a working sand pit near Montmorillon to watch 2-3 pairs of Bee-eaters hawking insects, together with many Sand Martins – a fitting end to a good first day in the field considering the low temperatures. Day 3 Friday 24th June Bright, sunny periods, warmer with no appreciable wind, 23°C We awoke today with brighter skies, and many swifts and hirundines hawking over the hotel. Our first stop was a private etang near Moulismes, where our luck held, the sun shone, and temperatures gradually picked up, though still on the cool side. Our first species was Large Red-eyed Damselfly, Erythromma najas, the second several Goblet-marked Damselflies, Erythromma lindenii, both showing well on Lilypads. Our first Scarlet Darter, Crocothemis erythraea, a stunning male followed; this and the two common 'tailed' skimmer species provided good photo opportunities. We continued on to another etang in Plaisance commune, again near Moulismes. Here we found at least 6 Orange White-legged Damselflies, Platycnemis acutipennis, all males, and a single female. We took lunch here in shade of the poplars, but not before finding our first Western Clubtail, Gomphus pulchellus, a male, and a single Four-spotted Chaser, Libellula quadrimaculata, these now being at the end of their flying period. The weather was now warm and sunny, so we moved on to try a river site near La Trimouille. Our stroll along the river here produced many good species, most notable being Beautiful Demoiselle, Calopteryx virgo, Club-tailed Dragonfly, Gomphus vulgatissimus, Brilliant Emerald, Somatochlora metallica, Orange-spotted Emerald, Oxygastra curtisii, (2 males), and an early Southern Hawker, Aeshna cyanea. Here we also saw many more Green-eyed Hooktails, Onychogomphus forcipatus, and Western Clubtails, Gomphus pulchellus; we could all now get to grips with the finer details of their identification. Hilary found an Orange-spotted Emerald male hung-up and posing nicely for photos, we also found many butterflies and insects here. Having found 23 odonata species within half-an- hour of Montmorillon, we concluded our visit to this area with a splendid meal – and an early night! Day 4 Saturday 25th June Hot, sunny, very little wind, 28°C This morning we left the hotel and stopped off in the old quarter of Montmorillon for a panoramic view of the town, and a brief visit to the 900-year-old church. 2 © Naturetrek August 11 Dragonflies of La Brenne & Vienne Tour Report We then headed north to Le Pinail reserve north of Poitiers but still in the Vienne. We arrived at about 11.00, so decided to make a brief visit to the nearest of the pools before taking lunch near the entrance parking area. Unfortunately, this initial stroll indicated that all the White-faces (Large White-faced Darter, Leucorrhinia pectoralis) were finished, and that the reserve was suffering badly in the drought. Normally this species is present here well into July. However, our first Common Emerald Damselfly, Lestes sponsa, was seen before a fairly eventful lunch! We had just settled down to eat, in the shade of the stone shelter, when two superb Short-toed Eagles appeared right above us, both hovering and hunting together at low altitude. Ten minutes later, Chris found an emerald dragonfly that was frequently landing on a poplar next to the shelter – it was our first and only Downy Emerald, Cordulia aenea. And, as they often come in 'threes', our first Southern Migrant Hawker, Aeshna affinis, a female/immature male, was seen briefly by a few of us; we would all get good views of this species in the Brenne. After a lunch-time session like this, we considered staying put, but the lure of the Pinail, with it's bizarre landscape, drew us on, and we started our 2km walk in perfect weather. Hilary soon found the only Large Red Damselfly, Pyrrhosoma nymphula, of the trip, a male, not long afterwards we found a splendid male Yellow-spotted Emerald, Somatochlora flavomaculata, which kept hanging-up on the same Tree-heather branch, rather obligingly. Nick had not seen this species here before, and it meant that in two days we had seen all four species of Emerald dragonfly, and all in the Vienne! We then left Le Pinail and headed east towards the Brenne, deciding to stop in Chauvigny marketplace for celebratory drinks and ice-creams – for which the leader was most grateful! We arrived at Bellebouche, in the Brenne, with plenty of time to spare before our pleasant stroll down to the restaurant beside the large etang there. Most nights we eat outside here, on the shady terrace surrounded by mature trees, and a nice view across the water. Day 5 Sunday 26th June Hot, with a light northerly wind, strong sunshine, in the late p.m. 35°C Before breakfast some of us early-risers looked for birds around the confines of the bungalows where we stay. There is good, mature mixed woodland here and around the etang, and most of us saw Green, Great Spotted, and Lesser Woodpeckers, the latter heard only, several Bonelli's Warblers and Chiffchaffs, two Crested Tits, Nuthatches and at least two Short-toed Treecreepers. After breakfast we headed off for our first destination in the Brenne – an etang near Subtray. Our target species here were emerald damselflies, and we were not to be disappointed. In the first small area we came to that had the warmth of the morning sunlight, we found Southern Emerald Damselflies, Lestes barbarus, Small Emerald Damselflies, Lestes virens, and Common Emerald Damselflies, Lestes sponsa, as well as another Willow Emerald Damselfly, Chalcolestes viridis. These were all within a 100 metre stretch of track. We took another track along the side of an etang, and found our first Common Winter Damselfly, Sympecma fusca, and then Margaret found a splendid male Southern Migrant Hawker, Aeshna affinis, which patrolled along the edge of a dry etang, giving everyone excellent views of this super species.