Dragonflies -- Graceful Migrators

I do remember that we called dragonflies "darning needles" when I was growing up!

Dragonflies are graceful flying insects that migrate like birds! Growing up in Northeastern Ohio, we really didn't see a lot of dragonflies like we do today in Northeastern Florida. My inspiration for this lens on dragonflies occurred on August 27, 2007 at 2:15pm in the afternoon as I was driving out of our community. I saw something I've never seen before -- literally hundreds and hundreds of dragonflies gracefully flying back and forth across the entrance to our community. That day happened to be a day we experienced a lunar eclipse!

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Dragonfly FAQs

A dragonfly is a type of insect belonging to the order Odonata, the suborder Epiprocta or, in the strict sense, the infraorder Anisoptera. It is characterized by large multifaceted eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings, and an elongated body. Dragonflies are similar to damselflies, but the adults can be differentiated by the fact that the wings of most dragonflies are held away from, and perpendicular to, the body when at rest. Even though dragonflies possess 6 legs like any other insect, they are not capable of walking.

Dragonflies are valuable predators that eat mosquitoes, and other small insects like flies, bees, ants, and butterflies. They are usually found around lakes, ponds, streams and wetlands because their larvae, known as "nymphs", are aquatic.

Nymphs can deliver a painful bite when threatened. The wound should be cleaned thoroughly to prevent water-borne infections.

read the rest of the Wikipedia article

The good news about a Dragonfly

Dragonflies typically eat mosquitoes, midges and other small insects like flies, bees, and butterflies. Oh, poor butterflies as I like them!!!

Even better news: Dragonflies do not normally bite or sting humans.

They are valued as a predator that helps control the populations of harmful insects, such as mosquitoes. It is because of this that dragonflies are sometimes called "mosquito hawks" in North America along with the Crane Fly.

Photo Credit: I took this picture of a dragonfly in our back yard, which backs up to a nature area!

Dragonfly expert

While researching dragonflies online, I came across this person's contact information. He appears to be quite knowledgeable and capable on identifying dragonflies who is a contributing editor at BugGuide a super cool site for some great pictures!

Photo Credit: Joshua's photo of a female Roseate Skimmer (Orthemis ferruginea) hanging at an unusual angle, being EATEN! by a Green Lynx Spider (Puecitia visidens). Poor dragonfly!!!

Joshua S. Rose, Ph.D.
World Birding Center
Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park
joshua.rose_NO_SPAM@tpwd.state.tx.us
956-584-9156 x 236

Nature + dragonfly expert

Researching dragonflies, I also came across Jeffrey S. Pippen [jspippen@duke.edu] who has got some of the COOLEST nature pictures including pictures of dragonflies and some Florida dragonflies.

I emailed Jeff to tell him how much I enjoyed his beautiful dragonfly pictures and to ask him about the dragonfly sightings I encountered.

Jeff got back to me to tell me something I didn't know! Dragonflies, like birds, MIGRATE!

Your sightings are pretty cool! This is the time of year that dragonfly numbers can really build up in areas, especially as part of migration. You may know that many species of dragonflies migrate, similar to birds! And actually, some butterflies besides the Monarch also migrate south in fall, and a few emigrate north in the fall! Were your dragonflies medium sized and yellowish gold in color or were they large and blue/green?

Photo Credit: Jeff's photo of a Yellow Sided Skimmer.

Dragonfly Migration Resembles That Of Birds, Scientists Say

Source: Princeton University; Date: May 12, 2006

Science Daily - Scientists have discovered that migrating dragonflies and songbirds exhibit many of the same behaviors, suggesting the rules that govern such long-distance travel may be simpler and more ancient than was once thought.

In collaboration with Michael May (Rutgers U), David Moskowitz (Rutgers U), David Wilcove (Princeton U), Jim Adelman (Princeton U), we are investigating migration in dragonflies along the Eastern seaboard. Here a Green darner is tagged with a 0.3g radio transmitter (Sparrow Systems) for release in Cape May, NJ. (Photo: Dave Moskowitz).

The research, published in the May 11 Biology Letters, is based on data generated by tracking 14 green darner dragonflies with radio transmitters weighing only 300 milligrams -- about a third as much as a paper clip. Green darners are among the 25 to 50 species of dragonflies thought to be migratory among about 5200 species worldwide.

The team of researchers that made the discovery, led by Princeton University's Martin Wikelski, tracked the insects for up to 10 days from both aircraft and handheld devices on the ground. They found that the dragonflies' flight patterns showed many similarities to those of birds that migrate over the same regions of coastal New Jersey.

'The dragonflies' routes have showed distinct stopover and migration days, just as the birds' did,' said Wikelski, an associate professor of ecology and evolutionary biology. 'Additionally, groups of both birds and dragonflies did not migrate on very windy days and only moved after two successive nights of falling temperatures. We saw other similarities as well, which makes us wonder just how far back in Earth's history the rules for migration were established in its animals.'

Dragonfly Migration [continued]

According to fossil records, dragonflies appeared about 285 million years ago, predating the first birds by about 140 million years.

Wikelski said that the findings could also be an important demonstration of how to track small animals over great distances, a technique that could be useful in agriculture and ecological management.

'These small transmitters could enable us to track animals from space all around the globe if satellites were available,' Wikelski said. 'Though nearly everyone has heard of animal migration, we actually know very little about how animals move. It could tell us a lot about the way species respond to climate change and other disturbances. Because the economies of many nations are still largely agrarian, a better understanding of how, say, locust swarms travel could assist us with managing both local agriculture and the world economy that hinges upon it.'

Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by Princeton University. --Science Daily.

A Jacksonville Dragonfly -- 10/07

Jacksonville was deluged with rain the end of September and early October 2007. Early one Saturday morning, I found this dragonfly dead on our front walkway.

It was a bit sad to find this beautiful creature who surely must have drowned from all the rain. What's interesting to see are the well-formed wings, along with the lavender purple body.

I've got an email in to the Bug Man to help identify this dragonfly.

Some interesting dragonfly FAQs

Did you know???

Hines Dragonfly: Dragonflies are living fossils, having remained unchanged for over 300 million years. The first known dragonfly fossil had a wingspan of about 29 inches.

The four wings of dragonflies can move independently of one another and are powered by large muscles that almost fill the thoracic cavity. The wings typical beat about 35 times a second and can propel the dragonfly at speeds up to about 35 miles per hour.

The most highly developed sensory system of a dragonfly is that relating to sight. Their eyes cover a visual area of almost 360 degrees and they are designed to detect even the slightest of movements and light flickering off the wings of prey insects. One scientist suggested that 80% of the dragonfly's brain is dedicated to processing and responding to visual information.
UCMP Berkeley: Odonata [toothed ones] consists of three groups: Anisoptera (which includes dragonflies), Zygoptera (which includes damselflies), and Anisozygoptera (a relict group represented by only two living species.

This order is very diverse with about 5000 species, and its members are easy to observe.

Dragonfly eggs are round and about 0.5 mm long. Dragonfly nymphs are shorter and bulkier, and the gills are located inside the abdomen. The dragonfly nymph expands and contracts its abdomen to move water over its gills, and can squeeze the water out rapidly for a short burst of underwater jet propulsion.

Most of a dragonfly's life is spent in the larval stage where it molts from six to fifteen times.
Answers in Genesis: The insect goes through a remarkable transformation from a water-breathing creature (with gills) into the beautifully coloured air-breathing dragonfly with which we are familiar. If it were held under water in the adult stage it would drown.

the only significant change today seems to be their reduced size. Some fossil dragonflies have a wingspan measuring up to 70 centimetres (28 inches). Today the largest is about 19 centimetres (7½ inches) and many are considerably smaller.

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