Dragonflies And Damselflies

Blue Darner Differences

Dragonfly Damselfly • Generally strong flyers • Fore and hind wings different shapes • When at rest, wings held away from body and about 180 degrees

Dragonfly Damselfly wings wings

Comparison of wings

• Weaker flyers • Fore and hind wings about the same shape and size • When at rest, wings folded up on top of back Damselflies Dragonflies

• Eyes touch on top of head • Bigger body compared to damselfly

Damselfly Damselflies

• Eyes at side of head, don’t touch • Finer features compared to the dragonfly

Dragonfly Damselflies Dragonflies

• When at rest, wings may • When at rest, wings held folded up on top of back away from body and about 180 degrees Similarities

• Diurnal, or active during the day • Usually found near water • 2 pairs of wings • Predators through out life • Lay eggs • Don’t bite • Can’t walk

Domain-Eukarya Kingdom-Animalia Phylum-Arthropoda Class-Insecta Order-

Sub-order-Anisoptera Sub-order-Zygoptera

Dragonflies Damselflies Nymphs o Before a dragonfly or damselfly is an adult, they go through their nymph, or larva, from. o Most of a dragonfly or damselfly’s life is spent in nymph form Dragonfly nymph o Nymphs are aquatic. o Dragonfly and damselfly nymphs are both predators and prey. • They eat mosquito larva among other things. • They are eaten by Damselfly nymph frogs as an example. Dragonfly Myths

• Dragonflies are called snake doctors because they can bring snakes back from the dead • Dragonflies have stingers which some people are severally allergic to • Dragonflies used to sneak into bad children’s bedrooms and sew their lips together

Dragonfly facts

. A dragonfly’s wings beat a lot slower than a bees . Huge dinosaur dragonflys lived 300 million years ago . Dragonfly’s eyes have around 30,000 lenses in their eves. Though they can’t see detail well, they can see all the way around. . After a dragonfly egg hatches, it can live anywhere from 6 months up to 6 years. Most of it’s life is spent in nymph form. . Some species of dragonflies migrate

Dragonflies species  In all countries accept Antarctica, there are dragonflies.  About 5,000 total on earth.  450 of those are in the U.S.  68 species in OR and WA  More species of dragonflies than damselflies

Damselfly species

. 31 species of damselflies in OR and WA Predators or prey?

 Lions and sharks catch about 50% of their targeted prey  Dragonflies and damselflies catch about 95% of their targeted prey  Research suggests that dragonflies and damselflies are the most brutal hunters in the kingdom  Key points in the dragonflies and damselflies brain, wings, and eyes let it hunt with so little misses.

 Dragonflies get eaten by frogs, bigger dragonflies, and spiders Species of Umatilla County Family- Coenagrionidae (damselflies)

Species Tule Bluet

Western Red Damsel Family- (Dragonflies) Species

Pale Snaketail Sinuous Snaketail Family-Aeshnidae (dragonflies)

Blue-eyed Darner Species California Darner Corduliidae (dragonfly)

Western River Cruiser Blue Dasher

Band-winged Meadowhawk Libellulidae

Eight-spotted Skimmer Common Whitetail Pictures from- • Google images • Jack Simons

Information from- • Google