WHAT DO DRAGON FLIES EAT

 What do dragonflies eat? Adults and larva dragonflies are carnivorous insects which choose to hunt on the pray which is in abundance at the time.  They feed on smaller insects such as caddisflies, mosquitoes, flies, gnats, bees, mayflies, midges and butterflies.  They also eat termites and ants. They are able to move very fast and will change direction of motion instantly. They easily out fly their pray and capture them. They use their strong legs to seize and hold the prey. They have large protruding eyes which enable them see in all directions. The can clearly identify their prey. The larvae feed a lot. The females having developing eggs also feed a lot. Food shortage may negatively affect the reproductive behaviour of the dragonfly.

They hunt for their prey in groups. They are efficient hunters with mouths adapted to hunting. They have six legs which are positioned near the head. The legs are mainly used for catching and holding the prey. The legs are also used for perching on vegetation to rest or lay eggs. They have a prehensile labium. The labium can be extended forwards from under the head faster than the prey can react which enables them to subdue their prey.

The larva has two large compound eyes which cover most of the head. Each compound eye has about 28,000 individual eyes referred to as ommatidia. The most important function of the brain is processing visual information. About 80% of the brain is used for this function.

Dragonflies are able to fly very swiftly. They can achieve forward flights of up to 100 body-lengths per second and backward flight of up to 3 body-lengths per second. They are capable of being in the air without motion for about 1 minute. They cannot do this for more than one minute because it would interfere with their thermoregulation. Their wings are membranous and elongated. The 2 pair of wings also have strong cross vein together with numerous crisscrossing small veins that give strength and flexibility.  Adult wing spans can be as long as 20 centimeters.

The larva stage is spent in water. The eggs are laid near a water body and the larva find their way into the water. It has posterior tracheal gills and prehensile labium.  The labium consists of extendible jaws underneath the head.

Dragonflies are not flies. They belong to a group of insects referred to as odonata. They spend most of their life in the larva stage from where they molt directly into adults. They do not go through the pupa stage. They spend between 2 to 6 years in the larva stage depending on the altitude and latitude. The habitat of the dragonfly can be cool streams or rivers, ponds or stagnant clear water, or marsh.