The Dragons

While there is, no question, beauty in some man-made things, they pale in comparison to those of Mother Nature.

A night time city skyline may sparkle like jewels on the horizon but when it comes to the real jewels they are right here in our own back yards.

There are 5,900 species of dragonflies and damselflies world-wide, nearly 200 species appearing in Massachusetts, some 100 species on Cape Cod, and around 34 species only to be found on Cape Cod in the State of MA.

In the United States we have one, The Hine's Emerald Dragonfly, on the Endangered Species List. Fortunately there are efforts to protect it and its habitats underway by the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the State of Illinois headed by researcher Daniel Soluk, associate professor of biology from the University of South Dakota who has been studying the dragonfly since 1995.

According the the US Fish and Wildlife Service, "Dragonflies play an important role in nature. they catch and eat smaller flying insects, including mosquitoes, biting flies, and gnats. In its immature stage (nymph), a dragonfly is an important food source for larger aquatic animals such as fish. They serve as excellent water quality watchdogs, are part of our nation's natural heritage, and add beauty to our world." Some of the greatest threats to them are habitat loss or degradation and pesticides and other pollutants.

Last Summer, I conducted a little study of my own in a protected habitat, the backyard. While none of MY dragonflies are on the endangered species list, these little crown jewels simply fascinated me. And, I got to know some of them personally. But it was only after they were gone that I began to look up some of their names.

By names, I mean the names of their species, since I had already named mine; Vivian, Merle, Oberon, Annabelle, Sir Edward etc. I know it's a bit anthropomorphic and unscientific but these guys became friends and simply 'cried out' to be named. They would perch themselves, while hunting, on my knee and shoulder. I found I could pick some of them up and look them straight in the eyes.

At other times they would sit on the railing and observe me. How could I tell? They'd cock their heads and follow me whenever I moved. Then they would slip themselves into my flower pictures, follow me in the garden or pose and dance for me in the wind.

And some were, what I can only call, hams! They liked having their pictures taken, really.

I watched them hunt and sun themselves and if I didn't know any better I would have thought them cousins to the raptors, birds of prey. They are predatory like the raptors but, of course, they are insects not birds. Still, there's a lot of similarity to the raptors aside from their flying abilities (some dragonflies can fly up to 53 mph) and incredible eyesight. They use stealth to hunt,often camouflaging themselves in the leaves and flowers taking unsuspecting prey by surprise or the simply dive-bomb out of the blue or tail-chase their prey until they catch, dispatch and feed. And some, like many raptors, migrate.

Studies are being done at many hawk migration sites in the North East where researchers are catching them and fitting some of the larger species, like the Green Darner, with tiny transmitters.

By November the dragonflies were gone.

Now it is May and the dragons are returning but, all science aside, I find I would rather follow them around with my camera and notebook than a field guide.

For more information on dragonflies and some awesome pictures check them out on the Internet or better yet make friends with some at a nearby ponds, meadows and wetlands.