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Dragonfly life cycle has three stages- the embryo, the larva (or nymph), and an adult. Dragonflies can live as aquatic larva underwater for more than 2 years. Dragonflies belong to the insect order Odonata. These Odonata dragonflies are physically robust, large, and stouter-looking members that belong to the suborder Anisoptera. These Anisoptera dragonflies are called ‘true dragonflies.
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Dragonfly Life Cycle
A dragonfly after getting matured travels back to the nearest water body or the shores as a means to procreate. The male dragonflies become territorial and protect female dragonflies from other potential male dragonflies. And after that, the breeding process starts all over again once the adult dragonfly mates.
Dragonfly life cycle has three simple stages - the embryo, the larva (or nymph), and an adult. The details of these stages are discussed below:
Dragonfly Life Cycle
Dragonfly Life Cycle: Egg
A dragonfly starts their life as an egg in water or near water. After mating the female dragonflies carry and lay their eggs, while still holding on to the male or the male dragonfly guarding the female dragonfly against other males and predators. Generally, the eggs are directly dropped into the water on ponds, static water, or inside aquatic plants. And these eggs typically hatch in-between one to five weeks depending on their species. A female dragonfly can lay several thousand eggs in her lifetime in several various batches in a few weeks or days.
Eggs of Dragonfly
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Dragonfly Life Cycle: Larva (Nymph)
Dragonflies can spend most of their life underwater as larvae. But we have seen dragonflies flying around us during the hot summer months. This six-legs, hinged jaws, wing- sheaths creature can live underwater as long as two years and this can be called the longest life cycle of a dragonfly.
Usually, larva shed their skin or molt within a few hours for making new growth. Sometimes, they even molt as many as 14 times to reach full necessary growth. Up to one or two years of larva development lasts two months based on species and environment. Development can be accelerated or slowed down depending on whether the eggs are laid in cool water with less available food or in a warm climate where food is more available.
Larva (Nymph) of Dragonfly
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Dragonfly Life Cycle: Adult
The majority of dragonflies are triggered at adulthood and it is called Emergence. Dragonflies do not have a coconut stage in life, unlike butterflies. They usually emerge as an adult outside the water in their final molting stage. The adult is the final stage of a dragonfly and in this stage, they learn to breathe for the first time in the air.
Adult Dragonfly
As soon as they found the spot the larva slowly came in a new shell body pushing out from their old shell body and appeared as an adult dragonfly. An adult dragonfly has reflective wings with a pale look. And in this stage, they usually hunt and prey on mosquitoes and other small insects very frequently.
Complete Life-Cycle of a Dragonfly
Things to Remember
- There are three stages of a dragonfly’s life cycle-- the embryo, the larva (or nymph), and an adult.
- Dragonflies belong to the insect order Odonata and also belong to the suborder Anisoptera.
- The egg or the embryo is the first stage of a dragonfly. In this stage, a dragonfly starts their life in water or near water.
- The larva is the second stage of a dragonfly. In this stage, dragonflies spent their life underwater. They can live as long as two years underwater.
- And the third stage is adulthood. They usually emerge as an adult outside the water in their final molting stage.
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Sample Questions
Ques. Are damselflies different from dragonflies? (2 marks)
Ans. Yes, damselflies are different from dragonflies. Damselflies have equal shapes and sizes of wings. But dragonflies have different and unequal sizes and shapes of wings. Moreover, damselflies fall under the suborder Zygoptera. On the other hand, dragonflies fall under the order of Anisoptera.
Ques. Can a dragonfly eat a living organism? (2 marks)
Ans. Yes, a dragonfly eats both living organisms or insects that are usually smaller in size compared to a dragonfly, for example, mosquitoes, midges as well as butterflies (if butterfly size is smaller than the dragonfly).
Ques. What is a larva dragonfly? (2 marks)
Ans. Larva dragonfly is a type of dragonfly species and these dragonflies live underwater. These are such type of dragonflies that usually eats any type of species that are smaller in size. Some of these species of dragonflies also eat spiders directly from the spider web.
Ques. Where do dragonflies place their egg? (2 marks)
Ans. Dragonflies usually place their egg in stationary water or ponds to protect them from getting washed away in flowing water. Consequently, when a dragonfly dips their tail in water that means it is laying eggs.
Ques. What is the shortest life cycle of a dragonfly? (2 marks)
Ans. The shortest life cycle of a dragonfly from egg to death of the adult is six months. But seven types of aquatic larvae dragonflies lives for several years. Most of the dragonflies are caught by predators and don’t die of old age.
Ques. Do the dragonflies drink water? (2 marks)
Ans. Adult dragonflies get most of the water which they need from the food that they eat. But they can also drink from droplets of dew or water surfaces.
Ques. Are dragonflies essentially benign to humans? (2 marks)
Ans. Yes, the dragonflies are not only benign to humans but they are very helpful for cutting down harmful insects, for example, mosquitoes. Mosquitoes are usually dragonfly prey.
Ques. Does a dragonfly also have two eyes? (2 marks)
Ans. Dragonflies have two big compound eyes. And these two eyes have thousands of lenses. And also, three eyes with simple lenses. The retina of the eyes of a dragonfly contains thousands of photoreceptors to collect light and simultaneously send information about the visual scene to process the information.
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