Life and death in the pond

Two damselfly larvae eating a young Backswimmer

photos taken with Canon Powershot A640

Nature study

Dragonfly nymph - probably a Common Darter


[Lesser] Water Boatman


A damselfly nymph?


A tiny newt eft, not much more than 1 cm long


photos taken with Canon Powershot A640

Pond dipping

I entered an alien world this afternoon. After ordering a pond dipping kit from Alana Ecology about a month ago, I felt the time was right to put it to use. Here are some of the mindboggling creatures I found.



Wiggly thing - fly larva?


Beetle larva


Baby Backswimmer - a perfect minature version of its parents, but about 3mm across


Snail


What's this? A Caddis Fly larva? The rolled up thing it lives in is about 35mm long. Comically, it swims around the pond inside its little tube. If you know what it is, please leave a comment

More photos on Flickr

If you have a garden pond, all this can be yours for about £15. Do it, you won't regret it!

photos taken with Canon Powershot A640