Norfolk hawker Aeshna isoceles
The Norfolk Hawker (Anaciaeschna isoceles) is one of Britain’s rarest and most range-restricted dragonflies, with a UK stronghold in the Norfolk Broads. The species also occurs along the Waveney Valley and the northern fringes of Suffolk, where the grazing marsh ditches and clear, slow waterways it requires extend southwards. It has a distinctive, clear-winged appearance and vivid yellow-green eyes. Highly sensitive to water quality, it is closely associated with water-soldier (Stratiotes aloides) as aquatic larval habitat. Suffolk records come mainly from Broads-adjacent areas of the Waveney Valley, making it one of the county’s most significant invertebrate specialities.Image: © Benoît Segerer, iNaturalist.
Find out more: iNaturalist, Suffolk Wildlife Trust, British Dragonfly Society
Suffolk’s Priority Dragonfly and Damselfly Species
Key
Listed as a conservation priority in Suffolk’s Biodiversity Action Plan.
Closely associated with Suffolk’s landscape and natural identity.
Identified as a key priority for recovery under Suffolk’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy.
Has a Species of the Month article attached.