Dragonfly Images

53 images for Dragonfly Clipart Free Download. Use these free images for your websites, art projects, reports, and Powerpoint presentations! ©2017 ClipartPanda.com About Terms. Colorful dragonfly. Detailed macro image of colorful dragonfly on a big rock Dragonfly. Beautiful big Dragonfly isolated on white Dragonfly resting. Macro shot of dragonfly resting with black background Dragonfly in flight. Blue dasher dragonfly in flight with a bokah background of green sunlight on his wings Pachydiplax longipennis skimmer Dragonfly.

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Sympetrum flaveolumKingdom:Phylum:Class:Order:Suborder:Infraorder:, 1854Families. (hawkers or darners). (clubtails). (petaltails). (spiketails). (emeralds) $.

(skimmers, etc). (cruisers).

(tigertails)$ Not a cladeA dragonfly is an belonging to the order, Anisoptera (from ἄνισος anisos, 'unequal' and πτερόν pteron, 'wing', because the is broader than the ). Adult dragonflies are characterized by large, two pairs of strong, transparent, sometimes with coloured patches, and an elongated body. Dragonflies can be mistaken for the related group, (Zygoptera), which are similar in structure, though usually lighter in build; however, the wings of most dragonflies are held flat and away from the body, while damselflies hold the wings folded at rest, along or above the abdomen. Dragonflies are agile fliers, while damselflies have a weaker, fluttery flight. Many dragonflies have brilliant or metallic colours produced by, making them conspicuous in flight. An adult dragonfly's have nearly 24,000 each.Fossils of very large dragonfly ancestors in the are found from 325 million years ago (Mya) in rocks; these had wingspans up to about 750 mm (30 in).

There are about 3,000 extant species. Most are, with fewer species in. Loss of habitat threatens dragonfly populations around the world.Dragonflies are, both in their aquatic stage, when they are known as or naiads, and as adults. Several years of their lives are spent as nymphs living in fresh water; the adults may be on the wing for just a few days or weeks. They are fast, agile fliers, sometimes migrating across oceans, and often live near water.

They have a uniquely complex mode of reproduction involving indirect insemination, delayed fertilization, and sperm competition. During mating, the male grasps the female at the back of the head, and the female curls her abdomen under her body to pick up sperm from the male's secondary genitalia at the front of his abdomen, forming the 'heart' or 'wheel' posture.Dragonflies are represented in human culture on artifacts such as pottery, rock paintings, and jewelry. They are used in traditional medicine in Japan and China, and caught for food in Indonesia. They are symbols of courage, strength, and happiness in Japan, but seen as sinister in European folklore. Their bright colours and agile flight are admired in the poetry of and the prose of.

Late Jurassic , GermanyDragonflies and their relatives are an ancient group. The oldest fossils are of the from the 325 Mya Upper of Europe, a group that included the largest insect that ever lived, from the, with a wingspan around 750 mm (30 in); their fossil record ends with the (about 247 Mya). The, another ancestral group which lacks certain wing vein characters found in modern Odonata, lived from the Early to Late Permian age until the end Permian event, and are known from fossil wings from current day United States, Russia, and Australia, suggesting they might have been cosmopolitan in distribution. The forerunners of modern Odonata are included in a clade called the Panodonata, which include the basal Zygoptera (damselflies) and the Anisoptera (true dragonflies). Today there are some 3000 species extant around the world.The relationships of anisopteran families are not fully resolved as of 2013, but all the families are except the; the are a to all other Anisoptera, the are sister to the, and the are sister to a that includes the. On the, dashed lines indicate unresolved relationships; English names are given (in parentheses):Anisoptera(clubtails)(hawkers)(petaltails)(cruisers)(goldenrings)(skimmers)' not a clade (emeralds)(tigertails)Distribution and diversity About 3012 species of dragonflies were known in 2010; these are classified into 348 genera in 11 families.

The distribution of diversity within the bio-geographical regions are summarized below (the world numbers are not ordinary totals, as overlaps in species occur). An aggregation of globe skimmers, duringDragonflies live on every continent except Antarctica. In contrast to the damselflies (Zygoptera), which tend to have restricted distributions, some genera and species are spread across continents. For example, the blue-eyed darner lives all across North America, and in Central America; emperors live throughout the Americas from as far north as Newfoundland to as far south as Bahia Blanca in Argentina, across Europe to central Asia, North Africa, and the Middle East. The globe skimmer is probably the most widespread dragonfly species in the world; it is cosmopolitan, occurring on all continents in the warmer regions. Most Anisoptera species are tropical, with far fewer species in temperate regions.Some dragonflies, including libellulids and aeshnids, live in desert pools, for example in the, where they are active in shade temperatures between 18 and 45 °C (64.4 to 113 °F); these insects were able to survive body temperatures above the thermal death point of insects of the same species in cooler places.Dragonflies live from sea level up to the mountains, decreasing in species diversity with altitude. Their altitudinal limit is about 3700 m, represented by a species of Aeshna in the.Dragonflies become scarce at higher latitudes.

They are not native to, but individuals are occasionally swept in by strong winds, including a native to North Africa, and an unidentified darter species. In, only a few species of dragonfly including the treeline emerald and some aeshnids such as are found, possibly because of the low temperature of the lakes there. The treeline emerald also lives in northern, within the, making it the most northerly of all dragonflies. General description. Like this, are slenderer in build than dragonflies, and most hold their wings closed over their bodies.Dragonflies (suborder Anisoptera) are heavy-bodied, strong-flying insects that hold their wings horizontally both in flight and at rest. By contrast, (suborder Zygoptera) have slender bodies and fly more weakly; most species fold their wings over the abdomen when stationary, and the eyes are well separated on the sides of the head.An adult dragonfly has three distinct segments, the head, thorax, and abdomen as in all insects.

It has a exoskeleton of hard plates held together with flexible membranes. The head is large with very short. It is dominated by the two, which cover most of its surface.

The compound eyes are made up of, the numbers being greater in the larger species. Aeshna interrupta has 22650 ommatidia of two varying sizes, 4500 being large.

The facets facing downward tend to be smaller. Has 23890 ommatidia of just one size. These facets provide complete vision in the frontal hemisphere of the dragonfly. The compound eyes meet at the top of the head (except in the Petaluridae and Gomphidae, as also in the genus ). Also, they have three or ocelli. The mouthparts are adapted for biting with a toothed jaw; the flap-like, at the front of the mouth, can be shot rapidly forward to catch. The head has a system for locking it in place that consists of muscles and small hairs on the back of the head that grip structures on the front of the first thoracic segment.

This arrester system is unique to the Odonata, and is activated when feeding and during tandem flight. Anatomy of a dragonflyThe thorax consists of three segments as in all insects. The is small and is flattened dorsally into a shield-like disc which has two transverse ridges. The and are fused into a rigid, box-like structure with internal bracing, and provides a robust attachment for the powerful wing muscles inside it. The thorax bears two pairs of wings and three pairs of legs. The wings are long, veined, and membranous, narrower at the tip and wider at the base.

The hindwings are broader than the forewings and the venation is different at the base. The veins carry, which is analogous to blood in vertebrates and carries out many similar functions, but which also serves a hydraulic function to expand the body between nymphal stages and to expand and stiffen the wings after the adult emerges from the final nymphal stage. The leading edge of each wing has a node where other veins join the marginal vein, and the wing is able to flex at this point. In most large species of dragonflies, the wings of females are shorter and broader than those of males. The legs are rarely used for walking, but are used to catch and hold prey, for perching, and for climbing on plants. Each has two short basal joints, two long joints, and a three-jointed foot, armed with a pair of claws. The long leg joints bear rows of spines, and in males, one row of spines on each front leg is modified to form an 'eyebrush', for cleaning the surface of the compound eye.

Migrant hawker, has the long slender abdomen of dragonflies.The abdomen is long and slender and consists of 10 segments. There are three on segment 10; a pair of superiors (claspers) and an inferior.

The second and third segments are enlarged, and in males, on the underside of the second segment has a cleft, forming the secondary genitalia consist of, hamule, genital lobe and penis. There are remarkable variations in the presence and the form of the penis and the related structures, the, cornua and genital lobes.

Sperm is produced at the 9th segment and is transferred to the secondary genitalia prior to mating. The male holds the female behind the head using a pair of claspers on the terminal segment. In females, the genital opening is on the underside of the eighth segment and is covered by a simple flap (vulvar lamina) or an, depending on species and the method of egg-laying. Evony age 2.

Dragonflies having simple flap shed the eggs in water, mostly in flight. Dragonflies having ovipositor, use it to puncture soft tissues of plants and place the eggs singly in each puncture they made.Dragonfly nymphs vary in form with species and are loosely classed into claspers, sprawlers, hiders, and burrowers. The first instar is known as a prolarva, a relatively inactive stage from which it quickly moults into the more active nymphal form. The general body plan is similar to that of an adult, but the nymph lacks wings and reproductive organs. The lower jaw has a huge, extensible, armed with hooks and spines, which is used for catching prey. This labium is folded under the body at rest and struck out at great speed by hydraulic pressure created by the abdominal muscles. Whereas damselfly nymphs have three feathery external, dragonfly nymphs have internal gills, located around the fourth and fifth abdominal segments.

Water is pumped in and out of the abdomen through an opening at the tip. The naiads of some clubtails that burrow into the sediment, have a snorkel-like tube at the end of the abdomen enabling them to draw in clean water while they are buried in mud. Naiads can forcefully expel a jet of water to propel themselves with great rapidity. Coloration. In a dragonfly's eyesMany adult dragonflies have brilliant or metallic colours produced by, making them conspicuous in flight. Their overall is often a combination of yellow, red, brown, and black pigments, with structural colours.

Blues are typically created by microstructures in the cuticle that reflect blue light. Greens often combine a structural blue with a yellow pigment. Freshly emerged adults, known as tenerals, are often pale-coloured and obtain their typical colours after a few days, some have their bodies covered with a pale blue, waxy powderiness called pruinosity; it wears off when scraped during mating, leaving darker areas. Male green darner, has non-iridescent structural blue; the female (below) lacks the colour.Some dragonflies, such as the green darner, have a noniridescent blue which is produced structurally by scatter from arrays of tiny spheres in the of epidermal cells underneath the cuticle.The wings of dragonflies are generally clear, apart from the dark veins and pterostigmata. In the chasers (Libellulidae), however, many genera have areas of colour on the wings: for example, groundlings ( ) have brown bands on all four wings, while some scarlets ( ) and dropwings ( ) have bright orange patches at the wing bases.

Some aeshnids such as the brown hawker ( ) have translucent, pale yellow wings.Dragonfly nymphs are usually a well- blend of dull brown, green, and grey. Biology Ecology Dragonflies and damselflies are predatory both in the aquatic nymphal and adult stages.

Nymphs feed on a range of freshwater invertebrates and larger ones can prey on and small. Adults capture insect prey in the air, making use of their acute vision and highly controlled flight. The mating system of dragonflies is complex and they are among the few insect groups that have a system of indirect sperm transfer along with sperm storage, delayed fertilization, and sperm competition.Adult males vigorously defend territories near water; these areas provide suitable habitat for the larvae to develop, and for females to lay their eggs. Swarms of feeding adults aggregate to prey on swarming prey such as emerging flying ants or termites. Habitat preference: a four-spotted chaser, on an, the water violet, with submerged vegetation in the backgroundDragonflies as a group occupy a considerable variety of habitats, but many species, and some families, have their own specific environmental requirements.

Some species prefer flowing waters, while others prefer standing water. For example, the Gomphidae (clubtails) live in running water, and the Libellulidae (skimmers) live in still water.

Some species live in temporary water pools and are capable of tolerating changes in water level, desiccation, and the resulting variations in temperature, but some genera such as (darters) have eggs and larvae that can resist drought and are stimulated to grow rapidly in warm, shallow pools, also often benefiting from the absence of predators there. Vegetation and its characteristics including submerged, floating, emergent, or waterside are also important. Adults may require emergent or waterside plants to use as perches; others may need specific submerged or floating plants on which to lay eggs.

Requirements may be highly specific, as in (green hawker), which lives in swamps with the water-soldier,. The chemistry of the water, including its trophic status (degree of enrichment with nutrients) and can also affect its use by dragonflies. Most species need moderate conditions, not too, not too acid; a few species such as (black darter) and (four-spotted chaser) prefer acidic waters such as peat bogs, while others such as (scarce chaser) need slow-moving, eutrophic waters with reeds or similar waterside plants. Behaviour Many dragonflies, particularly males, are. Some defend a territory against others of their own species, some against other species of dragonfly and a few against insects in unrelated groups. A particular perch may give a dragonfly a good view over an insect-rich feeding ground, and the ( Pachydiplax longipennis) jostles other dragonflies to maintain the right to alight there.Defending a breeding territory is fairly common among male dragonflies, especially among species that congregate around ponds in large numbers.

The territory contains desirable features such as a sunlit stretch of shallow water, a special plant species, or a particular necessary for egg-laying. The territory may be small or large, depending on its quality, the time of day, and the number of competitors, and may be held for a few minutes or several hours. Some dragonflies signal ownership with striking colours on the face, abdomen, legs, or wings. The ( Plathemis lydia) dashes towards an intruder holding its white abdomen aloft like a flag. Other dragonflies engage in aerial dogfights or high-speed chases.

A female must mate with the territory holder before laying her eggs. There is also between the males and females. Females may sometimes be harassed by males to the extent that it affects their normal activities including foraging and in some dimorphic species females have evolved multiple forms with some forms appearing deceptively like males. In some species females have evolved behavioural responses such as feigning death to escape the attention of males.

Reproduction. Mating pair of marsh skimmers, forming a 'heart'Mating in dragonflies is a complex, precisely choreographed process.

First, the male has to attract a female to his territory, continually driving off rival males. When he is ready to mate, he transfers a packet of sperm from his primary genital opening on segment 9, near the end of his abdomen, to his secondary genitalia on segments 2–3, near the base of his abdomen.

The male then grasps the female by the head with the claspers at the end of his abdomen; the structure of the claspers varies between species, and may help to prevent interspecific mating. The pair flies in tandem with the male in front, typically perching on a twig or plant stem. The female then curls her abdomen downwards and forwards under her body to pick up the sperm from the male's secondary genitalia, while the male uses his 'tail' claspers to grip the female behind the head: this distinctive posture is called the 'heart' or 'wheel'; the pair may also be described as being 'in cop'.Egg-laying (ovipositing) involves not only the female darting over floating or waterside vegetation to deposit eggs on a suitable substrate, but also the male hovering above her or continuing to clasp her and flying in tandem. The male attempts to prevent rivals from removing his sperm and inserting their own, something made possible by delayed fertilisation and driven.

If successful, a rival male uses his penis to compress or scrape out the sperm inserted previously; this activity takes up much of the time that a copulating pair remains in the heart posture. Flying in tandem has the advantage that less effort is needed by the female for flight and more can be expended on egg-laying, and when the female submerges to deposit eggs, the male may help to pull her out of the water.Egg-laying takes two different forms depending on the species. The female in some families has a sharp-edged ovipositor with which she slits open a stem or leaf of a plant on or near the water, so she can push her eggs inside.

In other families such as clubtails (Gomphidae), cruisers (Macromiidae), emeralds (Corduliidae), and skimmers (Libellulidae), the female lays eggs by tapping the surface of the water repeatedly with her abdomen, by shaking the eggs out of her abdomen as she flies along, or by placing the eggs on vegetation. In a few species, the eggs are laid on emergent plants above the water, and development is delayed until these have withered and become immersed. Life cycle. Illustration of a naiad with mask extendedDragonflies are insects; they do not have a stage and undergo an incomplete with a series of nymphal stages from which the adult emerges.

Eggs laid inside plant tissues are usually shaped like grains of rice, while other eggs are the size of a pinhead, ellipsoidal, or nearly spherical. A clutch may have as many as 1500 eggs, and they take about a week to hatch into aquatic or naiads which moult between six and 15 times (depending on species) as they grow.

Most of a dragonfly's life is spent as a nymph, beneath the water's surface. The nymph extends its hinged labium (a toothed mouthpart similar to a lower mandible, which is sometimes termed as a 'mask' as it is normally folded and held before the face) that can extend forward and retract rapidly to capture prey such as larvae, and small fish. They breathe through gills in their, and can rapidly propel themselves by suddenly expelling water through the anus. Some naiads, such as the later stages of, hunt on land. :, newly emerged and still soft, holding on to its dry, and expanding its wingsThe larval stage of dragonflies lasts up to five years in large species, and between two months and three years in smaller species.

When the naiad is ready to metamorphose into an adult, it stops feeding and makes its way to the surface, generally at night. It remains stationary with its head out of the water, while its respiration system adapts to breathing air, then climbs up a or other emergent plant, and moults. Anchoring itself firmly in a vertical position with its claws, its skin begins to split at a weak spot behind the head. The adult dragonfly crawls out of its larval skin, the, arching backwards when all but the tip of its abdomen is free, to allow its exoskeleton to harden.

Curling back upwards, it completes its emergence, swallowing air, which plumps out its body, and pumping into its wings, which causes them to expand to their full extent.Dragonflies in temperate areas can be categorized into two groups, an early group and a later one. In any one area, individuals of a particular 'spring species' emerge within a few days of each other. The ( Basiaeschna janata), for example, is suddenly very common in the spring, but disappears a few weeks later and is not seen again until the following year. By contrast, a 'summer species' emerges over a period of weeks or months, later in the year. They may be seen on the wing for several months, but this may represent a whole series of individuals, with new adults hatching out as earlier ones complete their lifespans.

Sex ratios The of male to female dragonflies varies both temporally and spatially. Adult dragonflies have a high male-biased ratio at breeding habitats. The male-bias ratio has contributed partially to the females using different habitats to avoid male harassment.

As seen in Hine's emerald dragonfly ( ), male populations use wetland habitats, while females use dry meadows and marginal breeding habitats, only migrating to the wetlands to lay their eggs or to find mating partners. Unwanted mating is energetically costly for females because it affects the amount of time that they are able to spend foraging. Red-veined darters ( ) flying 'in cop' (male ahead)Dragonflies are powerful and agile fliers, capable of across the sea, moving in any direction, and changing direction suddenly. In flight, the adult dragonfly can propel itself in six directions: upward, downward, forward, backward, to left and to right. They have four different styles of flight: A number of flying modes are used that include counter-stroking, with forewings beating 180° with the hindwings, is used for hovering and slow flight. This style is efficient and generates a large amount of lift; phased-stroking, with the hindwings beating 90° ahead of the forewings, is used for fast flight.

Southern hawker,: its wings at this instant are synchronised for agile flight.The wings are, unlike most families of insects, with the flight muscles attached to the wing bases. Dragonflies have a high power/weight ratio, and have been documented accelerating at 4 G linearly and 9 G in sharp turns while pursuing prey.Dragonflies generate lift in at least four ways at different times, including classical like an aircraft; supercritical lift with the wing above the critical angle, generating high lift and using very short strokes to avoid stalling;. Some families appear to use special mechanisms, as for example the Libellulidae which take off rapidly, their wings beginning pointed far forward and twisted almost vertically.

Dragonfly wings behave highly dynamically during flight, flexing and twisting during each beat. Among the variables are wing curvature, length and speed of stroke, forward/back position of wing, and phase relative to the other wings. Flight speed Old and unreliable claims are made that dragonflies such as the can fly up to 97 km/h (60 mph). However, the greatest reliable flight speed records are for other types of insects.

In general, large dragonflies like the hawkers have a maximum speed of 36–54 km/h (22–34 mph) with average cruising speed of about 16 km/h (9.9 mph). Dragonflies can travel at 100 body-lengths per second in forward flight, and three lengths per second backwards. Motion camouflage. Further information:In high-speed territorial battles between male ( Hemianax papuensis), the fighting dragonflies adjust their flight paths to appear stationary to their rivals, minimizing the chance of being detected as they approach.

To achieve the effect, the attacking dragonfly flies towards his rival, choosing his path to remain on a line between the rival and the start of his attack path. The attacker thus larger as he closes on the rival, but does not otherwise appear to move. Researchers found that six of 15 encounters involved. Temperature control The flight muscles need to be kept at a suitable temperature for the dragonfly to be able to fly. Being, they can raise their temperature by basking in the sun. Early in the morning, they may choose to perch in a vertical position with the wings outstretched, while in the middle of the day, a horizontal stance may be chosen. Another method of warming up used by some larger dragonflies is wing-whirring, a rapid vibration of the wings that causes heat to be generated in the flight muscles.

The ( Anax junius) is known for its long-distance migrations, and often resorts to wing-whirring before dawn to enable it to make an early start.Becoming too hot is another hazard, and a sunny or shady position for perching can be selected according to the ambient temperature. Some species have dark patches on the wings which can provide shade for the body, and a few use the to avoid overheating. This behaviour involves doing a ', perching with the body raised and the abdomen pointing towards the sun, thus minimising the amount of solar radiation received. On a hot day, dragonflies sometimes adjust their body temperature by skimming over a water surface and briefly touching it, often three times in quick succession.

This may also help to avoid desiccation. Common clubtail, with prey Feeding Adult dragonflies hunt on the wing using their exceptionally acute eyesight and strong, agile flight. They are almost exclusively carnivorous, eating a wide variety of insects ranging from small and to, and smaller dragonflies. A large prey item is subdued by being bitten on the head and is carried by the legs to a perch. Here, the wings are discarded and the prey usually ingested head first.

A dragonfly may consume as much as a fifth of its body weight in prey per day. Dragonflies are also some of the insect world's most efficient hunters, catching up to 95% of the prey they pursue.The larvae are voracious predators, eating most living things that are smaller than they are. Their staple diet is mostly and other insect larvae, but they also feed on and small fish. A few species, especially those that live in temporary waters, are likely to leave the water to feed. Nymphs of sometimes hunt small arthropods on the ground at night, while some species in the genus have even been observed leaping out of the water to attack and kill full-grown tree frogs. Predators and parasites.

Japanese with a dragonfly, 1931: with gold and silver, Walters Art MuseumIn poetry and literature wrote in his 1901 book A Japanese Miscellany that Japanese poets had created dragonfly haiku 'almost as numerous as are the dragonflies themselves in the early autumn.' The poet (1644–1694) wrote haiku such as 'Crimson pepper pod / add two pairs of wings, and look / darting dragonfly', relating the autumn season to the dragonfly. (1718–1783) similarly wrote 'Dyed he is with the / Colour of autumnal days, / O red dragonfly.' The poet, described a dragonfly splitting its old skin and emerging shining metallic blue like ' ' in his 1842 poem 'The Two Voices', with the lines 'An inner impulse rent the veil / Of his old husk: from head to tail / Came out clear plates of sapphire mail.' The novelist described the rapid, agile flight of dragonflies in his 1937 nonfiction book Down the River:I saw, once, an endless procession, just over an area of water-lilies, of small sapphire dragonflies, a continuous play of blue gauze over the snowy flowers above the sun-glassy water. It was all confined, in true dragonfly fashion, to one small space. It was a continuous turning and returning, an endless darting, poising, striking and hovering, so swift that it was often lost in sunlight.

In technology A dragonfly has been with light-sensitive 'steering neurons' in its nerve cord to create a -like 'DragonflEye'. The contain like those in the eye to make them sensitive to light. Miniature sensors, a computer chip and a were fitted in a 'backpack' over the insect's thorax in front of its wings.

Light is sent down flexible light-pipes named optrodes from the backpack into the nerve cord to give steering commands to the insect. The result is a 'micro-aerial vehicle that's smaller, lighter and stealthier than anything else that's manmade'.