Dragonflies Rule!

Dragonflies freaked me out as a kid. They're so huge and the thought of them biting me gave me the willies.

Now I know that dragonflies eat mosquitoes and other insects that really do want to bite me.

The other day a dragonfly zoomed over my head and landed on a rock nearby. I took a closer look and realized it had caught and was now eating a horsefly that was about to land on me. It was great fun to see the dragonfly close-up as it rolled the horse fly around it's mouth slowly eating its prey.

Here's part of the Dragonfly Wiki entry...

A dragonfly is a type of insect belonging to the order Odonata, the suborder Epiprocta or, in the strict sense, the infraorder Anisoptera. It is characterized by large multifaceted eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings, and an elongated body. Dragonflies are similar to damselflies, but the adults can be differentiated by the fact that the wings of most dragonflies are held away from, and perpendicular to, the body when at rest. Even though dragonflies possess 6 legs like any other insect, they are not capable of walking.

Dragonflies are valuable predators that eat mosquitoes, and other small insects like flies, bees, ants, and butterflies. They are usually found around lakes, ponds, streams and wetlands because their larvae, known as "nymphs", are aquatic.

Nymphs can deliver a painful bite when threatened. The wound should be cleaned thoroughly to prevent water-borne infections.

Dragonflies Rule!