Emperor Dragonfly

G and I walked over to Natural Surroundings this morning, to have a wander around their lovely gardens (and a cuppa of course). It was forecast to be more appropriate weather, overcast or with some sun and 21C max. Well that was wrong, it was sun most of the time, 26C and very muggy! A bit bright for taking photos at the pond, but there were so many dragonflies around I couldn't resist. In particular there were a few bigger ones that were quite aggressive to the others, when I checked my photos later I was able to confirm my suspicion that it was an emperor dragonfly - the first I've ever seen! I've added a collage of photos as an extra, I particularly liked the dainty and beautiful banded demoiselle perched on the harsh barbed wire. I've not even looked at my photos of the flowers yet! I've not seen anywhere so teeming with life as the gardens were today, I suspect the cold weather then the heatwave is the reason, everything is catching up! This afternoon I watched the women's tennis final at Nottingham, a bit of a disappointing contest, as finals often are.