Since our Hawker Dragonflies (Migrant and Southern Hawkers) fly later in the year, we think this exuviae (cast skin) has survived the winter. It may have been hooked on to a plant just above the waterline, and only fallen into the pond with recent disturbance.

Sawflies look quite wasplike in their black and yellow, but have no narrow “waist” at the base of the abdomen – they’re pretty much the same width all the way along. All the waisted Hymenoptera evolved from Sawflies.

We’ve now seen three Roman Snails in different parts of the reserve, after none in the past few years, so either the weather has brought them out, or more likely someone released their pet snails when they no longer wanted them. As the name suggests, the species has been in Britain since the Romans, who introduced them for food. We’re happy to see this handsome species here, but all the same it does constitute an introduction to a nature reserve…