The Dragonflies of New Hythe, Kent (Day Trip)

Summary

Join Kent dragonfly recorder, photographer and birder, Marc Heath, in the garden of England, Kent where we will spend our day at New Hythe Gravel Pits searching for and photographing the excellent variety of dragonflies, damselflies and birds that can be found in this area of the county.

We will start our day walking around the lakes where we should, weather permitting, see a variety of Odonata including Blue-tailed, Azure, Common Blue, Large Red and Red eyed Damselflies, along with Hairy Dragonfly, Four Spotted Chaser, Common Darter, Banded and Beautiful Demoiselle, Downy Emerald, Emperor, Norfolk Hawker (a few in recent years) and the nationally rare Lesser Emperor Dragonfly, which has appeared in good numbers in recent years (including 20 in 2023). After lunch, we will continue our journey around the lakes to find and photograph the other species to be found here. The terrain is generally flat and we anticipate walking around two to three miles during the course of the day.

Start time is 10am and we will aim to finish at around 4pm.

• Lesser Emperor and Norfolk Hawker comprise the rare species to be found here
• Excellent views of many damselflies
• A peaceful setting in West Kent
• Expertly led by Odonata enthusiast, Marc Heath