You know summertime has arrived when the Dragonfly and Damselfly make their appearance.
One of the most recognizable orders of insect is the Odonata which encompasses both Dragonflies and Damselflies. There are some 5,500 identified North American species in the order and over 450 of these are found throughout the United States and Canada alone. Dragonflies are the more common of the two and both share many of the same physical characteristics and behaviors. Odonates are found near fresh water sources and are active on pleasant sunny days. Color patterns vary as do wing designs and lengths can run as long as 5 inches (as with the "Giant Darner"). Bulging eyes are set to the sides of the head and each contains thousands of honeycomb-shaped lenses providing excellent vision with moving targets. Six legs are utilized for grabbing pray or clasping onto reeds and plants. Wings are noticeably veined and appear as two pairs of straight appendages emanating from the spine.
There are a total of [ 52 ] Dragonflies and Damselflies in the InsectIdentification.org database. Always pay close attention to color variations and body shapes when trying to identify a species. To remove entries below, simply click on the 'X' in the red box of each respective insect.
