You will often see them zipping around your local lake, pond, or pool and don't think much of them. If you take a closer look, you will be amazed by these amazing aerial predators. This is the Dragonfly.

Beginning their lives in the water, these small larvae hunt small insects, tadpoles, and even some little fish! These are certainly the top of the food chain in the North American swamps. With outstanding speed and keen eyesight, these predators are able to catch just about anything they want to... The larvae live in the water for 2-3 years and shed their skin up to 13 times! After they are large enough to crawl out of the water and sheds their skin one last time...

From this final shed, they sprout wings, a long tail, and new breathing parts that allow them to breathe in the air. Having some of the most complex eyes of any insect, these insects are able to hunt, avoid predators, survive, and later find a mate!

Even at this stage, these are the apex predators of the air being able to eat just about anything in mid-air! Dragonflies come in all colors, shapes, and sizes! Unfortunately, they only live as adults for 1-8 weeks! That's enough time to hunt, find a mate, and then finally die. Although they don't have much time as adults, they still have enough time to carry on the lineage of these amazing little fighter jets...

Written by Bradon Coy on 8/16/18