4
THE DRAGONFLIES OF EPPING FOREST.
from the males, in a shallow arm of a large pond. It has been
remarked that the sense of hearing in dragonflies appears to be
in a very rudimentary state, and we have obtained a striking
confirmation of this view. We were watching a male A. imperator
at a pond abutting upon the main road through the forest.
Motor cars and bicycles and other vehicles were passing in an
incessant stream, but, although the pond was a fairly large one
and more retired ponds were near at hand, the insect continued
its flight, without manifesting the slightest alarm or irritation,
parallel with the road, and at a distance of not more than a few
feet from its noise and dust.
(10) AEschna grandis was first seen and taken on July 22nd,
when it was common; it afterwards became quite scarce, and
was not observed after the first week in September.
(11) AE. cyanea.—This dragonfly, which is always abundant
with us, was first taken on July 29th. On September 30th we
came across a female so intent on oviposition as to pay little or
no heed to our near approach; she was crawling along a fallen
tree-trunk lying beside a small pond much frequented by the
species, and inserting her ovipositor into the interstices of the
wood and bark. As late as October 21st a male was captured on
the wing, a date later by a full month than our previous latest
record for the species.
(12) Sympetrum striolatum was not taken earlier than July
29th. We did not find it really common until October 14th,
and it was still pretty plentiful a week later (October 21st), when
it was last met with. A female of extraordinary size was
taken on September 9th; it measured 43 mm. in length, and
65 mm. across the hind wings. On the same date some females
were obtained having a considerable amount of red upon the
abdomen.
(13) Lestes sponsa.—As was the case last year, this pretty
little insect was not found within the limits of Epping Forest, as
strictly defined. On August 8th, however, a visit to Coopersale
Common, one of Doubleday's favourite localities to the north-
east of Epping, revealed an abundance there of both males and
females.
(14) Sympetrum flaveolum.—We took this species, which has
not been previously recorded from the British Isles since 1900,
pretty plentifully in Epping Forest from August 8th to Septem-
ber 2nd. On the first-named date a single male was obtained
near Epping. On August 12th, when we revisited the old gravel-
pit which had produced Brachytron pratense earlier in the year,
we were fortunate enough to get a female, in addition to four
males. The same pit yielded eight more males a week later.
The last specimen, a solitary male, was taken on September 2nd
at a neighbouring pit, at which not a single example had been
hitherto seen. It seems almost certain that these insects had