Dazzling Dragonflies!!

Many species of dragonflies are currently active in Southern Ontario including the Blue Dasher (top of photo) and Twelve-spotted Skimmer.

Dragonfly Nymph: In early June, we watched this dragonfly nymph walk along the road shoulder at the edge of a small lake. I have seen MANY dragonfly nymphs in the water during all my years of teaching pond studies, but this is the first I've seen a live one out of the water! 

The nymph was looking for a suitable plant on which to crawl so it could emerge from its exoskeleton or "exuvia". (photo is from last year) Dragonflies in Southern Ontario can spend up to 4 years at the larval stage and complete 17 moults before emerging from the water as an adult!

We recently found a Great Blue Skimmer which is a rare visitor to Southern Ontario. It was a "life" species for us!

2 Blue Dashers attempting to share the same real estate!

Slaty Skimmer

Since dragonflies do not breathe fire, I was curious as to how they got their name. There are many folklore stories to explain the origin of the name. Historically, the shape of the dragonfly's body "freaked out" people enough to associate them with the devil. The Romanians used the same word, "drac" for both "devil" and "dragon".  It is believed that the word "devil's fly" became "dragonfly" somewhere along the line in English translation. 

www.treehugger.com/things-you-never-knew-about-dragonflies-

 

Dragonflies, including this Eastern Pondhawk, have many hairs on their legs. In flight, these hairs can act like a net to assist in catching mosquitoes, gnats and other small insects. A single dragonfly can eat between thirty and hundreds of mosquitos every day! They have up to a 97% success rate when hunting and are often called "Mosquito Hawks"!

www.treehugger.com/things-you-never-knew-about-dragonflies-

Halloween Pennant: one of my favourite dragonflies!