*Willow Emerald Damselfly | Chalcolestes viridis, Towneley School Pond, 24 August 2025 (Mike Watson)*

THEY’RE HERE! The colonisation of the UK by Willow Emerald Damselfly | Chalcolestes virids has been just as spectacular as that of Small Red-eyed Damselfly | Erythromma viridulum as they race each other towards Scotland. Willow Emerald now has a foothold in East Lancashire. The first were found by Jen Coates at Lower Towneley Pool in Burnley in 2023 but there were no sightings the following year. However, she did see at least six on 24 August this year at the same spot, which suggests they did breed after all. In the meantime, Allen Holmes found it at another site in Burnley, at Heasandford Lodge.

I had become weary of searching for it without success around Clitheroe so I wanted to see what their habitat was like in Burnley, which might provide some clues to where to look in the Ribble Valley. Allen and I had a great day on his local patch, seeing Willow Emeralds at four sites. We had at least three but maybe as many as six at Heasandford Lodge, including 1-2 mating pairs. Then Allen spotted another at Rowley Lake, in an alder a few metres downstream from the weir. We followed this up with a visit to Lower Towneley Pool where we located one of Jen’s damselflies and then we found it at another new site, Towneley School Pond, in the willows by the pond. The following day John Wright spotted one at another site at Oswaldwhistle where evidence of breeding had been discovered. They have already been busy in East Lancs!

*Willow Emerald Damselfly | Chalcolestes viridis, Heasandford Lodge, 24 August 2025 (Mike Watson)*

I learned from our sightings. Apart from at Towneley School Pond, they were all very conspicuous, perching on the outermost dead branches of trees. They only did this in sunshine. They were using these perches to hunt smaller flies, making upward sallies up from them in a Sympetrum style, often returning to the same perch. Those at Heasandford Lodge and Rowley Lake were in Alders not Willows and the one at Lower Towneley Pool was in an Ash (so no need to focus purely on willows!). At Heasandford and Rowley Lake they were over water (this is also important for their breeding cycle so their larvae fall into water not cold ground). When disturbed they seemed to go upwards in the trees not down (I have seen this before), the mating pairs also did this.

WILLOW EMERALD DAMSELFLY