Mocha Emerald at Onondaga, Brant

[Bill Lamond]

Hi,

For the last 4 days I have been seeing large emeralds along the Grand Valley Trail, E of Painter Rd, just N of Onondaga, Brant. I suspected they had to be Mocha Emeralds due to their large size and the habitat which would seem to be unsuitable for other large emeralds (Williamson's, Clamp-tipped). On my first 3 visits to the site I was unable to catch any. Today 25 July 2026 I caught two males along the intermittent creek in the woods where the males were patrolling. The creek had just a tiny flow today between the intermittent pools of water. There was a recent rainfall that contributed to this flow but I suspect in much of the summer there is no flow. The creek would consist of many pools interspersed by sections of mud. The stream the individuals were in was in my opinion poor quality, but this species seems to thrive in these habitats unlike almost all other Somatochlora species.

This is one of the dullest Somatochlora species but I think it is still lovely. The green eyes are obvious but the other colours are subtle. It is a thrill to see the males cruising slowly over the creek in the heavily shaded woods.

It isn't at all surprising that this species would be found here as they have been found 6 km to the WNW of here in east Brantford.

I suspect this species will be found in other areas to the east.

And it is interesting to speculate whether the species is expanding its range or whether it has been in this area, undetected, for years.

Bill