Most insects are fairly small, but dragonflies, as the name suggests, can be magnificent monsters, although undeniably nice to see! Here are 20 Interesting Dragonflies; They are insects, but giants in the insect world.
General facts about dragonflies
1. The dragonfly belongs to the order Odonata, with true dragonflies being subordinate to Epiprocta, infraorder Anisoptera , and damselflies being subordinate to Zygoptera . Odonata means “dental jaw” (because it does!) and Anisoptera comes from Greek meaning “uneven wings” because the insect has two pairs of wings and its hind wings are wider and shorter than its front wings. The true dragonflies always carry their wings outstretched, while the damselflies can be identified by their four equal wings, which they carry flat against their body when not in use.
2. Dragonflies have been given many descriptive names around the world – in England they are called “water dippers”, the Chinese call them “ancient glassy” and they were called the “great winged needle” by the ancient Celts! Another nickname is the “mosquito hawk” because they occupy the same position in relation to mosquitoes as the hawk does to mice. That is quite helpful from them to human.
dragonfly species
3. There are approximately 5,680 dragonfly species and they are found all over the world except Antarctica. However, outside of the tropical areas, there are only a few hundred (and most of these are in fairly remote areas).
4. The earliest dragonflies were around 300 million years ago (so a lot older than the dinosaurs) and were possibly the first flying insects ever. Also, modern dragonflies, while much smaller, look very similar to their various ancestors, but have changed little over that time.
bubble size
5. Most dragonflies have an average wingspan of 7.6 to 10.1 cm (3-4 inches), however modern dragonflies such as the Costa Rican damselfly Megalopreprus caerulatus have been measured with wingspans of up to 7.19 cm and in the period of the Dinosaurs they were *much* larger – the largest fossil dragonfly found so far had a wingspan of 76 cm making it the largest flying insect in history than as far as we know.
6. At the other extreme, the smallest living dragonfly is probably the Southeast Asian Nannophya pygmaea. This is only 1.5 cm long and has a wingspan of 2 cm.
Dragonfly Facts: Properties
7. The main distinguishing features of a dragonfly are its two pairs of wings, as mentioned above, large, multifaceted eyes that take up most of its head, and a long, thin body. It has six legs, like most insects, but it’s not very good at walking with them – it much prefers to fly, which makes it very good and *very* fast. An Australian Dragonfly has been recorded at a speed of 58 km/h and claims of speeds of 96.5 km/h have been made but have not been verified.
dragonfly wings
8. The dragonfly’s two pairs of wings give it exceptional power and agility when flying. Not only can it move forward normally, but it can also fly backwards, sideways, up and down – or hover in one place, which is anything but most insects.
9. Unlike bees, whose wings beat about 300 times per second and produce their characteristic buzzing sound, dragonflies use their two sets of wings more effectively and therefore only need to beat them about 30 times per second to achieve flight.
10. The dragonfly’s distinctive and huge eyes each contain about 30,000 lenses and provide almost all-round vision, as well as the ability to distinguish between ultraviolet, colored and even polarized light, allowing it to see through reflections on the water. However, human single-lens eyes see much more detail, if only for the much smaller vision we have with our “forward-facing” eyes.
Dragonfly Life Cycle and Lifespan
12. Preferring breathable, healthy water, the presence of dragonflies in a given body of water is taken as an indication of a “good” water source. They are carnivorous predators and mainly catch mosquitoes, but also almost all other insects, e.g. B. ants, flies, mosquitoes, bees, mosquitoes, wasps, moths and occasionally butterflies. They also catch tiny fish, tadpoles, and other waterborne larvae.
13. Like the males of most species, male dragonflies are very territorial and will defend their territory against all (male) comers, chasing invaders while trying to attract the females. If you see two dragonflies in a chase, it’s likely a man seeing an intruder. but if the insects fly while clinging to each other, it is probably mating.
14. Dragonfly eggs can be laid singly or in groups of up to several hundred and hatch after about three to five weeks. The females place them on or at the edge of a freshwater source, usually on floating plants or those growing out of the water, and then abandon them altogether.
fifteen. The larval form looks more or less like an adult, apart from lacking wings, and is as harmful to other small aquatic life as it is to other flying insects. It has expandable jaws that allow it to grasp prey larger than itself, a spike on its head that it uses to stab small fish, and when it wants to move fast, it ejects a jet of water from its rear end to fling it away .
16. The nymph will shed her skin several times during her underwater life, eventually crawling out of the water to shed her last time and emerge as an air-breathing, winged adult. After spreading the new wings and “pumping up” them with blood, the adult sets out to try them and almost immediately begins to catch other flying insects.
Dragonflies and us
18. There are some strange stories about dragonflies, such as the idea that they sew up the mouths of bad children or the eyes of anyone who sleeps outside (earning the nickname “Devil’s Darning Needle”), or that it’s a ” Snake ‘act doctor’, able to bring dead snakes’ bodies back to life. Of course, neither is true, and in fact the dragonfly is in no way harmful to humans! If anything, it helps us by reducing the number of mosquitoes in its territory – an adult dragonfly can catch and eat about 50 mosquitoes a day.
19. Dragonflies also feature in many myths and legends; In Native American lore, dragonflies are the souls of the dead. They represent activity and speed to some Native American tribes, they symbolize pure water to the Navajo, and they appear on Zuni pottery, Pueblo necklaces, and Hopi rock art. The Swedes believed the devil used them to weigh people’s souls.
20. The Japanese and Chinese revere them as sacred beings and indeed one of Japan’s traditional names is “Akitsushima” or “The Dragonfly Isles” – but they also use them in traditional medicine. On the other hand, Indonesians catch them on sticky sticks, fry them in oil and eat them as a delicacy!
dragonfly symbolism
All over the world different people hold the dragonfly to symbolize many different things but below is the most accepted dragonfly symbolism represented in different countries by different cultures.
Strength and Agility: The dragonfly is believed to signify strength and agility. This is mainly expressed through his fast and agile body movements. Although it looks vulnerable, it is often difficult to catch.
Live the moment: The dragonfly lives and enjoys every bit of her life. Because it has such a short lifespan, it makes the most of every stage of its development.
Change and Adaptation: This insect easily adapts to any situation it finds itself in. Nature seems to have favored it in this respect.
Connection with Nature: In so many cultures, including Native Americans, their fairy nature easily earned them this status. They are considered the perfect connection to the fairy world and could be the symbol of the departed soul. To the Japanese, the dragonfly symbolizes autumn and summer and was used by the samurai to represent power and victory.