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The Emperor Dragonflies!
  After living in the pond for at least two years hunting down and scoffing my tadpoles, the nymph suddenly gets the urge to leave the water. The nymph slowly hauls its bulk up a stem. They can travel quite a way, I've found them several feet above the water - I've even found them some distance from the pond. Once it has found a suitable place the nymph settles down and waits. After about half an hour, the skin splits just behind the head. The adult form starts to push its way out of the old larval skin.  
  Bit by bit, the adult insect eases out of the juvenille casing. I think the white tubes that you can see are some kind of breathing tube - they're of no use now it has left the water and are eventually discarded with the empty shell. It hangs motionless for a while. You can see the wings, still crumpled and wet, and you can also see the breathing tubes still attached to the old skin. In the background there are caterpillars - I'm not sure what these are but they love my Yellow Flag Iris leaves! Presently, the adult insect curls upwards so that it is no longer hanging head-down. Now it can start pumping fluid into its wings, and drying them off.  
  The wings take shape! Almost three hours after it first peeked above the surface of the water, and it is ready to fly. A beautiful Emperor Dragonfly, by far the largest species of dragonfly in the country. Snout to tail this monster is about 8cm long - the wingspan is over 10cm!  
  The eyes. Like all dragonflies the Emperors have superb eyesight and are outstanding aerial hunters.