The dragonfly has an acceleration rate that defies the imagination! Watch the swallows fail to catch this darting creature as it vanishes from one resting place, to reappear in another!  Pictured above, perched momentarily on a dandelion stem, is a male Broad-bodied Chaser.  Dragonflies are the largest, and one of the most spectacular of insects to be found in Britain today.  Of the many types of dragonfly, the emperor is Britain's largest, reaching a size of 7.5 cm, or 3 inches.  The emperor is iridescent blue - the colour that we maybe associate most with dragonflies, but other members of the dragonfly and damselfly families exhibit a variety of vibrant colours.  They may be seen hovering and flitting over fresh water, some being widespread over Britain, and others being confined to certain areas, or habitats, within our islands. 

Dragon or Damsel?

There is often confusion between dragonflies and the smaller, but equally charming, damselflies. Both belong to   to the insect order called Odonata (meaning "toothed jaw").  The Odonata are divided into three groups, or sub-orders; Zygoptera (damselflies), Anisoptera (dragonflies), are a third group that is now almost extinct, Anisozygoptera.  In Britain, the term "dragonflies" is often used to include both dragon and damselflies - just to cause confusion!   Telling the two orders apart is easy if you se them land:  Dragonfly always have their wings open apart and flat, whilst damselflies always close their wings together when perched.  

To discover more, click on the blue hyperlinks:-

• Lifecycles of Dragonflies and Damselflies

• Emperor Dragonfly

• Common Darter Dragonfly

• Broad-bodied Chaser Dragonfly

• Red Damselflies 

• Blue Damselflies

• White Legged Damselfly

• Demoiselles

Both Dragon and Damsel Flies have a high acceleration rate and speed.  They can hover or fly backwards and forwards.  However, they have little versatility compared to many bees during flight.  They have four wings of fairly equal size, which beat comparatively slowly - 20 - 30 times per second (for the sake of comparison, butterflies wings beat at a rate of 8 - 12 times per second, midges up to 1000 times per second).  The Dragonfly's wings and flight system could be regarded as being the nearest to the first proto-types that we have left - they have great similarities to the earliest fossilized remains of flying insects, showing little in the way of development or improvement.  Incidentally, the wings are the key to deciding whether a  a specimen belongs to the Dragonfly or Damselfly family.  Dragonflies are unable to close their wings, and rest with them open, wide and  flat;  whilst members of the Damselfly order rest with both pairs of wings closed together.

 

Above:  Damselflies may be as bright and attractive as Dragonflies, but they can be distinguished by the fact that they close their wings together when at rest.  Dragonflies are more likely to pitch in a horizontal position, maybe on a lily flower or leaf, where their wings are protected from the wind.  However, they soon began to treat us as part of the scenery while working near the pond, and were happy to perch on our hands.

 

 

As these creatures are unable to twist and turn to chase their prey, their speed is essential to them.  They hunt by sight, and so that sight must be highly developed.  Like many insects, they have compound eyes with multiple facets - each facet being a tiny light-focusing lens.  Whilst we know little about the way in which an insect sees, we do know that the number of facets directly relates to the quality of vision.  At the bottom end of the scale is the worker ant, who spends most of his life underground and has little use for sight.  He sees little more than light or dark with eyes comprising of up to nine facets.   The housefly has about 4,000 facets in each eye, and butterflies between 2,000 and 17,000, according to species.  Dragonflies fulfill their need for superior vision with 28.000 facets in each eye.  This allows them to spot their lunch from about twelve metres away, and pounce at a speed that your own eyes will struggle to follow! 

Whether my flying dragons and damsels found our pond whilst in flight, or were imported as larvae or eggs in plants, I cannot say, but their beauty and variety in the garden on a warm, sunny day is a sight that always catches the eye and imagination.  Was it these lace-winged creatures, dancing and racing over the water and flowers, that were once the stars of a hundred tales of fairies and sprites?  With sparkling, electric blue bodies, or furry yellow or red ones;  iridescent wings or almost invisible slips of lace, they will probably be the nearest thing that you will ever see to the fairies of ancient folklore.