Red-eyed Damselflies at Neath Canal

 A quick mid-afternoon check of the Neath Canal at Penrhiwtyn was better than I'd hoped. My main concern was that canal maintenance team had been in to clear the water lilies before the early season damselflies had been given chance to breed. To my relief the lily cover was just about right and with it came the diversity among damselflies that was missing from previous visits made earlier this year.
The total numbers did seem a little low but this was not helped by only brief spells of sunshine during my visit. This stretch of the canal was sheltered from the wind today and it remained warm even when the sun wasn't shining, and many of the species were still active under cloudy conditions.

The Red-eyed Damselflies were the most conspicuous damselfly, which may also have led to it being the most abundant of the damselfly species on show? 22 in all between the 2 bridges including 3 tandems in copula. The only noticeable absentee was Large Red Damselfly. However, a sighting of a Beautiful Demoiselle, behind Milland Road Industrial Estate, on the canal was a pleasant surprise. Also an overhead sighting of a Darter sp. (presumed to be Common Darter) that didn't stop.

Highlight - Red-eyed Damselfly (22)
Also, Beautiful Demoiselle (1), Azure Damselfly (7), Variable Damselfly (15), Common Blue Damselfly (13), Blue-tailed Damselfly (12), Hairy Damselfly (24) & Darter sp. (1)