Large Red Damselfly and Exuvia

When I started early  my afternoon walk into Monkwood on Saturday, the hunch I had had all week that Today would finally be the day I would see my first Odonata of the year began to fade.But as I approached the site the cloud cover broke up and suddenly there was my first Large Red Damselfly of the year !

Large Red Damselfly, Monkwood 4th May

Last year I had my first on the 5th of May, but I was only just really starting my interest with Odonata, and they had been kicking around in Worcestershire since early April last year, due to the mild spring March weather of 2012.
Not so this year, I had yet to see any records from Worcestershire, so maybe this was a first ?

Whats more important is that they are back, and what made my afternoon was finding my first Exuvia..I actually found the Teneral, or newly emerged Damselfly first, clinging to vegetation, trying to avoid predation whilst it gradually and magically came to life. A few inches away in some adjacent vegetation was its exuvia..a whoop for joy rang through the wood !

The teneral beastie, after 15 minutes or so, made its maiden flight , just a few yards. You could see the red colours appearing in its body before your eyes. After a few more minutes, it was off again into higher vegetation a few metres away, no doubt to finish the maturation process in a less snackable location.

Teneral Large Red Damselfly

It's Exuvia close up