ID query and worry re newly emerged dragonfly

[Dillybythesea]

Hi! I'm wondering if there's a problem here? The wings on one side of this large dragonfly (an Emperor?) have unfurled perfectly, but the other side remain badly crumpled, after several hours. I'm keeping an eye so the birds don't descend, but...

[triops]

Sadly, at this stage, the crumpled wings will never unfurl. The problem was probably caused by disturbance and damage at the critical stage, possibly by the wind. Such a shame, but if you have ever watched the whole almost miraculous process, you may wonder how any of them are successful at all!
Unless you want to keep it as a specimen to show others what an amazing creature it is despite the damage, then let it be eaten by something and recycled!

[Dillybythesea]

Oh NO!!! That's terrible news. Big sigh! But thanks for responding. It is an Emperor, is it, please?

[GuyF]

Yes, a female Emperor. It's very easy for things to go wrong at this stage, and I expect that this sort of thing must happen a lot more frequently than we realise!
Guy

[Dillybythesea]

Thanks Guy. And yes, I suppose it must - but horrid to see, all the same!

[Red Robin]

Very nice photo .

I have a 2-inch Dragonfly nymph in my pond and so I'm naturally keen to learn all I can. Do you know what time of day yours emerged? Is that gravel on the edge of your pond and is that where she chose to transform?

Thanks

[King Edward]

I think our pond has had trouble this year with emerging Emperors being eaten by (probably) a Crow. So far about 10 seem to have emerged, all on the same clump of sedge. They mainly seem to emerge overnight, starting not long after dark, so they're ready to fly off in the early morning. Before emergence, the larvae/nymphs seem to wait vertically just under the surface, holding onto a stem - apparently this is because their gills stop working just before metamorphosis so they need to breathe atmospheric air.

Since they all seemed to be getting eaten (didn't witness this happening, but I was finding the exuviae knocked into the water and the leaves were disarranged), I actually brought one of the full grown nymphs inside to emerge in safety in my bedroom. I put it in half a bucket of pond water with a choice of suitable sticks poking up. I had to rescue it once after it climbed up and fell out on to the floor, but when I checked it before going to sleep it had climbed up into what looked like a suitable emergence position (in the dark). By the early morning, it had emerged completely successfully, and then tried to fly after I opened the curtains. Not very well at first, due to the cold, but it warmed itself up sufficiently to be released via the window. So, overall a success I think.

Red Robin,
Your 2" nymph is most likely a Southern Hawker. It will probably emerge holding on to a vertical plant stem/leaf, either on one of the water plants or perhaps a terrestrial plant nearby. The Irises in your pond might well be suitable.

[Red Robin]

Originally Posted by King Edward

Red Robin,
Your 2" nymph is most likely a Southern Hawker. It will probably emerge holding on to a vertical plant stem/leaf, either on one of the water plants or perhaps a terrestrial plant nearby. The Irises in your pond might well be suitable.

....Thanks . The Damselfly nymphs emerge using my Irises,

[Dillybythesea]

Following on from Red Robin's query and subsequent responses, yes the nymphs here normally use upright stems, and overnight, but, after the bad news from triops abut this particular female, I took a closer look and saw the exuvia closeby, on the edge of the pond liner, and with damage, so I imagine she chose to emerge there and met with some interference. So near, and yet so far...