Dragonflies are a detachment of rather large insects capable of active flight. They have an elongated slender torso, heavy legs, a big head with a mustache and close-up. Eyes have a complex structure and consist of facets, each eye has 30 thousand facets. The part of the facets, which is located in the top of the eye, distinguishes only the form of objects, and the facets are located at the bottom of the eye, distinguish colors. Such an eye device allows dragonfly to navigate well and successfully hunt.
The dragonfly has four transparent wings with a multitude of residences, which provide her confident flight. The span of the wings of modern dragonflies can reach 19 cm, and the body length is up to 12 cm. The females are usually painted in a nondescript, and the body of males has a bright shiny color.
Spread
Dragonflies are widespread on all continents, except Antarctica. Most species of modern dragonflies live in subtropical and tropical zones. Highly big variety Dragonosis can be observed in South America.
Dragonflies can live where there are reservoirs favorable temperature mode And there is a sufficient amount of feed. They can be met in the meadow, in the forest, in the steppe and in the mountains.
Food
All dragonflies are predators. They hunt different insects. And some types of dragonflies attack their sacrifice right in flight, while others hunt insects on the leaves and stalks of plants.
Dragonfly larvae live in water and can eat worms, insect larvae, small crustaceans and even fry fish.
Lifestyle
Dragonflies pass three stages of development - egg, larvae (nymph) and imago (adult animal).
During the period of breeding the female, eggs are laying next to water, into water, or into rotting wood lying in water. For all his life, dragonfly can postpone from two hundred to several thousand eggs.
Over time, the larvae goes out of eggs that develop and live in water. For life under water, they have well-developed gills. In the larvae rota apparatus A ricking type with a powerful spreading lip, which is excellent for grabbing and holding mining. Larvae, as well as adult individuals, are predators. Towning in water, they cannot swim, but easily move along the bottom on the silest paws. In the water, the larva can live from one year to four years. During this period, the larva lins up to 25 times. After that, the larva crashes some plants on the stem and lines in last time, turning into an adult dragonfly capable of flight.
- The dragonfly has a hearing organ located on the mustache.
- Dragonflies can fly at a speed of 50 km / h.
- The greatest modern dragonflies live in South and Central America. The scope of their wings reaches 19 cm, and the body length is 12 cm.
- Prehistoric dragonflies inhabited in perm period, the scope of the wings could reach 70 cm.
Dragonfly Summary.
In this article, we suggest you to talk about what is for the creature - dragonfly. Building, food, reproduction, benefits and harm - all these are our main questions that you will find the answer by reading this small article.
To begin with, we will say: dragonfly has six segic limbs. This is an insect belonging to the subclass of winged insects. These numerous creatures have even their detachment - dragonflies.
Have you ever thought about how the dragonfly was received? In Russian - this is a combination of two outdated words: Highlands and string. The first word is translated as fidget, and the second is to jump. This name fully characterizes the router of the flight of these rapid creatures called the dragonfly. The building is the first question that we will consider right now.
Structure
Dragonfly, the structure of which we consider in this material has a long and very thin torso. It, in turn, is connected to the headband. On the torso dragonfly we can see three pairs of paws and two pairs of wings. It is important to note that the wings are transparent, they can have both the same sizes and shapes and different. We will talk about this more when we consider species. Dragonfly, the structure of which can vary from the species, may refer to one of the two main groups:
- Raw.
- Circling.
It is not difficult to guess, the first group concludes individuals that have wings equal length and shape, others - on the contrary (one pair can be very different from the other). On the head dragonfly we can well distinguish big eyes and mustache. Learn more about the senses. Eyes of these insects are complex. You can divide them into two departments:
- top, responsible for object recognition;
- the lower responsible for color recognition.
You probably noticed that the transparent dragonfly wings in all their length have accommodation, and there are spots on their tips, than the color of the wings themselves. This device helps to avoid wing fractures, reducing the vibration during flights.
Remember how other flying beings are flying. It is a beautiful and synchronous movement with wings. Dragonflies and here distinguished themselves, the movements of the wings can be incomprehensible when they balance, but synchronous to increase the speed. It is important to know that these odd creatures can develop a flight speed of up to 50 kilometers per hour.
Life expectancy
We looked at some features of the dragonfly structure, but it is important to clarify that they can live up to ten years. These are real long-livers in the world of insects. Let's a little about it.
In total, our planet has more than 6.5 thousand species of these unusual, graceful and beautiful creatures. In Russia, you can find a small number of species, approximately 150. So, the duration of life dragonfly directly depends on the type, at least it is two months, and the most long-livers may exist about ten years. This period turns on full cycle Insect development, and the development of larvae in some species may take more than one year.
Views
The external structure of dragonfly directly depends on the type. Allocate only three suburbs of insect data:
- relaxed;
- bulky;
- anisozygoptera.
What do they differ? The first view has two pairs of wings, they are narrow and almost the same form. If the dragonfly is at rest, then the front, and the rear wings are raised up and interconnected. In the second case, the wings have a different form, in a state of rest of the melts to the sides. To the third suburior the only raceThese insects are common in Japan and India. The peculiarity of the latter is also in the fact that they combine the signs of the first and second subjection.
The most common representatives of the relaxed dragonfly:
- Beauty.
- Arrow.
- Lutka-DRIADA.
- Megaloprepus Caerulatus.
It is very important to know the fact that the last of the listed is the world's largest dragonflies. The length of their body reaches ten centimeters, and the span of the wings of nineteen.
Bright Representatives of the Mill Outline:
- Motorker-emperor.
- Cordulegaster ring.
- Metal grandmother.
- Sedka ordinary.
- Dragonfly ordinary.
Habitat
Features external structure Dragonflies and method of reproduction directly depends on habitats. These insects prefer to be and lead their livelihoods near the water. What can be explained to the water element? Everything is very simple: the dragonflies lay eggs in water.
They choose places from mountain rapid flows, in ponds, lakes, rivers and canals. There are also types of dragonflies that prefer the swamps. Dragonflies are sun-born insects, they often do not fit under the sun on the glades and meadows. However, far from the water will not fly away. In cloudy and rainy days, dragonflies do not fly away, prefer to be in the "shelter".
Food
Our next question is internal structure Dragonflies and nutrition. As mentioned earlier, dragonfly refers to the type of arthropods. We know that representatives such as the heart looks like a multi-chamber vessel. Brain and abdominal nervous chain represent nervous system Insects.
What can speak the developed rodent rotted apparatus, good developed vision, elongated body and big, pretty powerful wings? Of course, dragonflies are predators. They prefer to eat their prey right on the fly. They feed insects are usually harmful. Large they catch their paws, and small (midges, mosquitoes) catch directly by jaws. To taste large mining, dragonfly has to go down to the ground. Hunting is a real sight. Even such good and yurt flyers, like flies, do not elude the tremor's paws. It is important to know what representatives of the dragonfly are very voracious. During the day, they eat extraction several times more than their weight (for example, flies can destroy more than forty per day).
Reproduction
We have considered the features of the dragonfly structure, the method of nutrition and the habitat. Now briefly about the method of reproduction. Fertilization occurs in the air. The larvae is postponed by the female mainly in standing water, their number reaches five hundred. Such a quantity is necessary due to the bad survival of the larvae. Larvae are laid in different ways:
- discharge into water;
- partial immersion;
- full immersion in the air bubble.
In this form, the larvae can be from twenty days to nine months, it all depends on the type of dragonfly, ambient and other factors. After the peamph appears ( life cycle A few seconds), then NAYAD. Next, the larva is developing from several days to several years.
Benefit and harm
Benefits is that adult dragonflies eat annoying and harmful insects (mosquitoes, flies and others), their larvae will exterminate the mosquito larvae. However, dragonflies distribute a dangerous disease of birds - progonomy. The larvae of some representatives are able to eat fry in fisheries.
Dragonflies are the most ancient insects predators: the remains found by archaeologists of their distant ancestors are dating coal period (350-300 million years ago). but long years Evolution practically did not affect the appearance of dragonflies, so these creations belong to primitive. To date, scientists have discovered and classified more than 5,000 species of these insects. But types of dragonfly, which can be observed in the European part of Russia, are very few: they are not more than a hundred. These insects prefer tropical climate, so the overwhelming majority of them inhabit wet forests South America and Southeast Asia. In the regions with a dry climate, dragonflies are not found.
Inborn predator
All the types of dragonflies (and nymph, and imago) are powered by insects, often bleeding (blindders, mosquitoes, midges). The shape of the body of dragonfly is perfectly adapted for hunting. These insects are "pinned", with severe breasts and an elongated abdomen. Dragonfly head is very mobile. It contains two complex facetful eyes, allowing the insect to see everything that happens around and behind, and between these two are ordinary, serving for orientation in space. The organs of view are arranged so that the best dragonfly sees against the sky. Therefore, she attacks the sacrifice from below. Insect has a powerful mouth ("rodent", as scientists say), short mustache and hard legs covered with hairs that help capture prey. Each representative of the detachment has two pairs of wings that are equally well developed. This means that it is a vote insect. Dragonfly can fly at a speed of more than 55 km / h.
Raw
Highlighted three suburbs dragonflies. The first one is flat. It includes elegant, lungs and, as a rule, small insects with a very elongated abdomen. Both pairs of wings are identical in size and shape; In a state of rest dragonfly adds them from behind, so that with the surface of the back, they form a sharp angle. Flyingly flying slowly and smoothly. Among them are such types of dragonflies, like an elegant arrow, beauty-girl and lutka dim. Powered nymphs, living in the water, have a special breathing body, located on the end of the abdomen, - tail gills.
Circling and Anisozygoptera
The second follower is bulky. They have a powerful torso, and the base of the rear wings is expanded. Eyes often come into contact. Flight speed is high high. Along the wings of these dragonfly divorced on the parties. The larvae of bulk dragonflies live in Ile and breathe with the help of rectal gills. It is worth mentioning some types of dragonflies related to bulk. It is a truck ordinary, the rocker is a big, grandmother bronze, dragonfly blood.
Representatives of the Third Sublist (Anisozygoptera) combine the signs of the first two, although they are closer to the bulk. In Russia, these dragonflies do not live.
Beauty
In general, the dilution of dragonfly stands out among other insect detachments with their aesthetic advantages. And by representatives of the beauty family, in principle, it is impossible not to admire. For example, beauty-girls are small (up to 5 cm long), thin milled dragonflies with the wings of no more than 7 cm. The body and the wings of males are painted in blue, green, purple shades and have a metal glitter.
In females, the torso is painted, and the wings are not. Beauties prefer the overgrown shores of quiet rivers and small streams. Eggs they lay in the leaves of coastal plants; The larvae also try to keep near the stems and roots. Flying beauty-girl resembles a butterfly flight.
Arrows
The arrows are not so spectacular as beauty, but just as graceful dragonflies. Photo of an elegant arrow, placed below, confirms this fact.
The arrows lead the same way of life as beauty, except that the prey is chosen more compromising. And it is not surprising, because the length of the body of an elegant arrow is only 3.5 cm, while the wingspan are 4.5 cm. The male is an elongated blue breast with a longitudinal black stripe and the black abdominal, as if intercepted by thin blue rings. Wings are narrow and transparent. Some females have similar painting, others are painted quite inexpressively and have no strips or rings. The arrows fly slowly and rarely leave their native places. Their larvae live and hunt in the stems and roots water plants. It is difficult to distinguish one view of the other as part of this family - the task is not easy. But it is impossible to confuse with another family of arrows.
Real dragonflies
This family from the drawing line includes numerous types of dragonflies. The names they speak for themselves: marsh, flat, blood. These insects are distinguished by a massive, wide and relatively short torso, slightly displaced with the wings and the presence of dark spots in their base. The female of real dragonfly lays eggs directly into the water of a pond or a quiet river, and sometimes in coastal sand. Large nymphs of real dragonflies live in Ile. Flat dragonfly is a medium-sized insect. The scope of the wings is 8 cm, the length of the body is 4.5 cm. And in females, and the males brown-yellowish chest, but the male's abdomen is covered with bright blue pollen, while the abdomen of females are brown, with dark stripes from the sides. Based on both pairs of wings - dark triangles. Eyes greenish.
Especially notable other representatives of the family - blood dragonflies (photo below). They are easy to learn about the bright color of the body - reddish-yellow, orange, or brown-red.
These dragonflies are one of the most late. They show activity from the middle of the summer until November. The transformation of blood dragon larvae in Imago occurs in just a couple of months.
Dedi.
Among the peculiarities of these dragonflies, it is necessary to name the flush color, widely spaced eyes and the presence of a recess at the base of the rear wings in males. Dedies are capable of long flights and prefer flowing reservoirs with clean waterWhere females lay eggs right on the fly.
Sedka Ordinary, Dage Taper and Dedka Horned - the most common types of dragonflies in Central Russia. These names are funny (as well as the "grandmother metallic" or "grandmother bronze"), but it should be borne in mind that the sages are also referred to as the riverboards, and the grandmothers are patrolrs. Sedka ordinary - black and yellow dragonfly with transparent wings. Coloring remotely resembles aspen.
The larvae of Dedok are voracious, strong and can be buried in soft il. And adult grandfather, oddly enough, are short-lived. They live no longer than a month.
Rocker
These are large, bright and expressively painted dragonflies. Representatives of Dragon Detail rarely possess such endurance: the rockers can fly away for many kilometers from their native reservoir (it happened that they were seen over the ocean). The dimensions of these insects also inspire respect: the wings of the wingspiece of the master (or the emperor) reaches 8 cm.
Chest at the jackets greenish, abdomen - blue, with a yellow ring. Wings in males - absolutely colorless, and in females - barely yellowish. Vision organs - bluish green. Swirls live in standing, often drying water bodies. Eggs they lay in the rotting fabrics of plants, immersed in water. Their large larvae can cope even with fry fish.
In addition to those mentioned above, there are representatives of such families in the European part of Russia as: grandmothers, lutki, cordwegasterides. All dragonflies are considered useful. They eat blood-sucking insects and pests and, in turn, are food for birds and fish.
These weightless fragile creatures adorning our planet have a long and, undoubtedly, amazing story, because dragonflies are the oldest of all existing insects.
Their ancestors appeared on Earth about 350 million years ago and were giant sizes. The scope of the wings they reached 90 cm, which is comparable to the characteristic of the most large birdsliving on the planet nowadays.
But with time the world changed a lot. Lost your primitive appearance and inhabiting its creatures. Now the scope of the wings in the largest dragonfly is barely reaches 20 cm.
In these insects attract, above all, eyes. At first glance, they seem incommensurable big. But since in nature everything is advisable, natural and harmoniously, then there are no accidents here. The shredding eyes have a faceture form and consist of a variety of tiny eyes, the number of which can reach 30 thousand. Each of them functions independently and separated from other pigment cells. Thanks to such a structure, dragonfly can simultaneously see everything that happens around her on the left, on the right, in front and rear.
Sometimes it seems that these weightless creations live beyond the laws of earthly attraction and resistance of the air: they are loaded in flight, then dramatically rushed up, then somewhere rushing at a speed reaching 90 km / h. Their continuous movement can last several hours. Amazing endurance and high speed dragonfly provide four wings. Each of the two steam works independently, but at the same time it is incredibly flavored, producing up to 150 cracks per second. As a result, insects can withstand long flights, and tired in the evening, sit down on plants stalks and rest until the morning.
It is difficult to believe, but it is the specificity of the floring of dragonfly in the air has become a tip when creating reactive aircraft. When the finished experimental engine was put on a warded car, from high speed and strong vibration, she literally crumbled into separate fragments. Improved the model of the aircraft helped entomologists, explained by the designers the principle of operation of dracosy wings, which in front have a special thickening. It is, just, and quenches the vibration during the flight.
Despite the development modern science, Entomologists have not yet been able to explain this mysterious phenomenonLike the duration of dragonfly flights capable of overcome thousands of kilometers. According to the stories of sailors, they often see these insects very far from the coast. For such risky travel, dragonflies are infrequently solved - once every six to seven years, going to huge flocks.
They are moving with a solid mass, the height and width of which reaches several meters. Where and why fly - unknown. The unsolved mystery gave rise to a set of: some interpreters of unknown phenomena are confident that the meeting with the dragonfly flock will bring a lot of trouble, others, on the contrary, see a favorable sign. In turn, scientists suggest that long-term unusual flights are most likely associated with an attempt to find new habitats.
Dragonfly - fast and clever predator, as evidenced by her elongated oblong body, roded by the oral apparatus, wide chest, swallowing wings. She grabbed the jazuned jaws, it's enough small insects on the fly, and in order to enjoy larger prey, it descends to the ground, sitting on the stalks of plants and catches the victim with agile paws. These insects are unsurpassed hunters. Seeing a small bug during the flight, the dragonfly instantly frozen in the air and, having changed the course sharply, throws up for prey. She still has the same: per day she is able to swallow more than 40 flies. Do not mind to enjoy mosquitoes and midges.
Dragonflies - insects "free" from the laws of gravity. The place for laying eggs dragonfly is searched for in the area of \u200b\u200bquiet shallow reservoirs with uncertic or standing water. Careful search only males are engaged, choosing plants stems or wet coastal soil. They also protect the ripening offspring from the encroachment of numerous competitors. The larvae of the winged beauties (they are called niada) begin to develop and live in water. The ripening period, depending on the type, lasts from three months to five years. It is quite easy to distinguish them on the sandy day of the reservoirs, although they have a similar color.
Grandmas, Dedi, Beauty and Rocberry are not the characters of the village play, but the names of the dragonfly - the oldest predatory insects, widespread all over the planet.
To date, Millions of Dragoniosis are presented to the world, more than 6,600 species are described, specialists are engaged in studying by more than 14 thousand published works by studying these insects.
The dragonfly chased poets, she was devoted to songs and fairy tales, the image of the insect is actively used in decorative work, even the motorcycle of the famous English brand Douglas is named after dragonfly - "Douglas Dragonfly". What kind of insect is dragonfly and how do she deserve such attention?
Evolution of dragonfly
The progenitors of modern dragonfly lived on Earth another 300 million years ago. Among them were gigantic dragonfly-like insects - Meganyevras growing up to 43 cm long and with a scope of the wings to 71 cm. Their fossil remains were found in England and France.
Unlike modern dragonfly, Meganyevra could put their wings, changing their shape, but did not know how to hunt on the fly, so only seated prey was enough. During the evolution, the shocks were narrowed and stopped to develop, and their aircraft It became increasingly perfect.
With an offensive triassic period (251-201 million years ago) The dragonflies have formed characteristic of modern species. Symptoms: PerityGMA, also called wing eye and nodules - a thick resident in the middle of the front edge of the wing.
Ancient dragonflies were numerous and extremely diverse. In the course of evolution, new forms were formed and died out, scientists investigated their fossil remains and classified into the treasures and groups. However, the systematics of modern dragonflies looks much more modest than the phylogenetic tree of their extinct ancestors.
It is worth noting that the dragonflies also belong to the infrack of the ancient times, that is, insects who are not able to put their wings behind the belly. Interestingly, in the planet's entomophaun, only the rods have such a feature except for dragonflies.
ODONATA detachment includes 3 suburbs:
- Anisoptera or bulk dragonflies, which have a rear pair of wings wider than the front at the base;
- Zygoptera or evenly dragonflies have wings of exactly the same shape and sizes;
- Anisozygoptera is an extremely small dragonfly dragonfly preserved with mesozoic era (251 - 68 million years ago), including only 4 types. Their representatives have signs of two major followers.
Dragongie sublocks form dozens of supersatimities and families. The most famous places of milled - these are lutcakes, beauties, false goods, flatflies and arrows. Among the representatives of the bulk, the most studied beochars, real dragonflies, grandmothers, tricks and rockers.
The dragonfly families include kinds and many species with similar morphology and some individual features.
What a dragonfly look like
Lovers of beautiful and people creative see its ease and grace in the dragonfly, and in the second place notice a big wide head, long thin body And the wings growing behind the limbs. It is not surprising that in medieval Europe The image of the insect was associated with people with the scales, on which the devil weighs the human souls.
For the majority of dragonfly - large insects, however body value different species It is very different. For example, one of the smallest is considered a representative of the family of real dragonflies - Nannophya Pygmaea, living in Asia. Its dimensions are only 1.5 cm, and the swings are about 2 cm.
The largest modern dragonfly - Megaloprepus Caerulatus from the Arrows family, it can be found in Central and South America. The magnitude of the males of the species reaches 10 cm, and the wings are scope of 19 cm. Among the largest dragonflies of Russia, the emperor will be marked, which grows up to 8 cm long.
Interestingly, dragonflies demonstrate the most different types of sexual dimorphism. There are species where males are noticeably larger than the females, for example, among representatives of the family of beauty, and the arrows on the contrary, females are superior to males in magnitude. However, the color of the body of insects is customary to be the main sign of the species difference in the floors.
The body of dragonfly is made up by three departments: head, chest and abdomen, which are covered with a solid exoskeleton, like all arthropods.
Abdominal department
About 90% of the length of the body of dragonfly falls on the belly, usually thin with a round cross section, the individual species have a wider and flattened. The abdomen is 10 developed segments consisting of upper and lower chitin semi-colts - tergites and sternites connected by pleural membranes.
The sexual hole of the females is located on erase 7 segments. The seed-wheeling hole of males is located on the 9 segment of the abdomen, and the penis is located much higher, on 2 segments. Therefore, before mating, the males are forced to bend the abdomen, pumping cum to the copulative organ.
At the edges of the penis and bubble, special appendages are growing - genital hooks, which males hold females in the process of mating. In general, the reproductive system of dragonfly has no analogues, therefore plays an important role in systematics of species.
Chest department
These insects have a well-developed, compressed breasts from the sides the dorsal partWhat is also a distinctive feature Dragonosis. To each department, which is called the front, medium and temper, are attached to one pair of limbs, and the distance between the middle and the rear pairs is less than between the middle and the front.
The thighs and legs on the sides are covered with two or three rows of sizes of various lengths and density, which was taken into account when drawing up the classification of dragonflies.
Top to the middle and rear breasts are attached along a pair of wings. At the unflinking and representatives of the Anisozygoptera sublistrate, the wings of one form and with a similar drawing of the housing. Raw dragonflies have a rear pair of wings widerly at the base.
Thin wings of these insects are 2 layers of chitin, permeated with a grid of small and large veins, which form a thick fancy drawing. Large veins are filled with tissue fluid - hemolymph, replacing blood insect.
On the wings of most dragonflies are fundamentally important elements - Perostigms characteristic of many insects, such as bees and ants. This is a small seal near the top edge of the wing, a peculiar ship, driving the top and an increase in wingspan. However, some dragonflies of PerityGma is absent.
Also, the dragonfly wings are characterized by a nodule - a short fat veil, which contributes to the twisting of the wing in the longitudinal plane.
Fold your wings and change their form. Modern dragonflies are unable. However, they can move wings autonomously. When dragonfly sits, her wings remain placed on the sides, can be omitted or pressed to each other.
The front of the insect breasts is connected with a moving joint head.
Head of dragonfly
The dragonfly has a large, wide, very movable head, which is spinning 180 °. The dragonflies of the facets are so big that they can be seen with a naked eye. Pickly dragonfly eyes are planted on the sides of the head. Black eyes are closer to the forehead.
Tires of dragonflies consist of a huge number structural units - Ommatidis (up to 28 thousand) performing different functions. Lower rows Serve to perceive colors, the top react to the movement of objects.
Macro photo: Dragonfly eyes. 
There are three simple eyes on the well-swollen packer. They can be located in the form equilateral triangleThere are elongated in a straight or planted around the edges.
Before the dark department there are a narrow forehead and platband. Upper lip The dragonflies are a short semicircular plate, the lower lip is much larger than the top, represented by 3 blades.
Inside hidden the powerful rodes of the rodent type. The chewing function is performed by paired top and lower jaws equipped with sharp teeth.
The dragonflosis must have very small, barely noticeable, composed of 4-7 segments. The tactile function is also performed by peppers located on the lower jaws.
Drainage dragonfly
Dragonflies are extremely diverse. The total tone of the body is monophonic or combines several colors and shades, often with interspersed strips, spots and metal glitter.
Representatives of most species are transparent wings, deprived of pigmentation. However, specimens are found with bright wings, fully painted or slightly darkened.
A bright example of beautiful color is the smallest view of Nannophya Pygmaea: the males of this dragonfly are distinguished by a bright red abdomen and the base of the wings of orange.
Another interesting painted dragonfly - Calopteryx Maculata from the beauty family. Bodies and wings of males are cast by turquoise or bluish-green metal glitter. It is curious that as the coloring of the dragonfly changes and becomes constant only with the onset of puberty.
Hundreds of sall types intersect, so in different corners Planets can be found a wide variety of dragonflies.
Where dragonfly live
These insects adapted to live everywhere except Antarctica. Like many representatives of the Planet's entomophaws, the dragonfly is not on the cold islands of the Arctic Ocean, in Greenland and Iceland.
The extremely extensive range of insects is due to their ability to rapid movement and distant migrations, the absence of special food preferences, and in many cases competition.
Separate species Dragonosis - typical endemics. For example, beo-bangly crowned can only be found in the mountains Central Asia. Some poorly studied species chose the most arid places - the deserts of Sahara and Namib, where they settled in oases.
Other species settled throughout the planet. For example, a redhead rod is found in any corners globeAnd she flies above all their relatives.
Therefore, the listed biotopes of dragonosis does not make sense. They live everywhere where there is water needed to remove the offspring and insects are found - the main feed of these predators.
What do dragonflies eat
Most of the dragonflies are extremely illegible in food and with pleasure eating any crawling and flying insects. The exceptions are the types of subfamily Pseudostigmatinae, their diet makes spiders, whom dragonflies are dometed directly from the web.
This is typically day predators, conducted in search of food, and their hunting methods deserve special attention.
Raw dragonflies prefer to hunt at an altitude of up to 10 m, above the fields, meadows and other open spaces. At the same time, each individual has individual hunting grounds that they regularly patrol. When a lot of food, dragonflies are harvested to 20 pieces for more productive hunting. Such behavior usually demonstrates the rockers and beochahs. Interestingly, bulging dragonflies chew prey on the fly due to the highly developed bottom lip.
Flying, these predators are masting the front and rear wings of the alternate, reaching excellent maneuverability and striking speed. So, the dragonfly Austrophlebia Costalis from the family of the rocker develops the speed of up to 97 km / h!
Dedi and grandmothers mined food predominantly above the water, not taking off above 2 m. These are very active predators conducted in motion all day, only occasionally resting on coastal herbs.
Numerous types of real dragonflies are hunting "from the addiction", which is served by rounded plants and squashs. Noticing fluttering, they immediately break off after.
The calm hunt is noted among the representatives of the sublocks of flat. On the fly, they do not eat, but they slowly flute from one plant to another until the insect hurry. A sharp drop, and dragonfly is already comfortable, leisurely hawkening the victim. Slow insects these predators are collected directly from the leaves.
Cannibalism is a fairly common phenomenon among dragonflies when large species Eating their small relatives. And the females of some types of arrows practiced sexual cannibalism, taking partners after mating.
Some dragonflies hunt far enough away from the reservoirs, the other lifetime spend next to the water, where they mate, and the females lay eggs.
Dragonfly with prey. 
Dragonfly with prey. 
Breeding and life cycle dragonflies
Young dragonflies before sexual maturity feed, and when they acquire an adult color, looking for a partner for breeding. Pairing in some species can continue for a few seconds, others last about 3 hours.
The pairing process always happens in the air. Males madely dragonflies capture females behind the front, black males hold the partner for their heads.
Dragonflies - insects with incomplete transformation, i.e. In its development, they pass 3 stages: egg - larvae (nymph) - Imago.
Phase Eggs
The fragility of the dragonfly average ranges from 250 to 500 eggs. Fertilized females can postpone eggs in almost any reservoirs with standing and running water: lakes, ponds, streams, rivers, artificial reservoirs, such as ditches and irrigation canals.
Small types of dragonflies are used to lay eggs abandoned animals flooded holes and emptiness in trees barrels. Pseudostigmatinae female females can postpone into bomelian leaves filled with water or place offspring on epiphytes. Representatives of some species are able to develop in thermal sources and brackwaters.
The females of bulk dragonfly drop eggs directly into water or determine the roots sticking over the surface. Males and representatives of the rocker family placed the masonry in a wet substrate or in the tissues of the columid vegetation, making the cuts of the eggs. In the first eggs with a rounded form, the second is obliged.
If the female put aside in the spring, the development of the larva in the egg lasts 4-5 weeks. Eggs peeled in autumn, winter, and larvae are formed up to 9 months. About 3 weeks are developing sharp eggs living in the tropics and in some types of moderate belt. One type of dragonfly inhabited in China was marked eggmifting.
Phase nymph
Depending on the species and climatic conditions Dragonfly stays in the larva stage from 3 months to 5 years and undergoes during this time from 7 to 11 lines.
A prerequisite is chosen from the ripened egg, also called the predamuth, its value barely reaches 1 mm. The first line of bulk dragonflies occurs in a second. Presenter of flattened lines after a few minutes.
Dragonfly larvae is thick and short or elongated and elegant. They have large and wide as adult heads, although devoid of mobility. Unique feature The larvae is the so-called culling mask - a tensile oral organ equipped with sharp teeth. Noticing Nymph's production throws forward, the teeth are sacrificed and the mask is tightened back. Depending on the structure, masks are flat or helmet.
Dragonflies larvae lead a rather low-wear lifestyle, although, like Imago, are predators. Some are buried in il, others are sitting on algae and patiently waiting for the appearance of mining. They are active in the main nymphs from the family of rockers, which pushed water from the rectum, moving the reactive method.
The basis of the diet of the nymph of a drawing dragonfly is the larvae of insects that live or develop in water. These are mosquitoes, various beetles, spring, bars, water bugs. Often the extraction becomes tadpoles and fry of small species of fish.
Painted dragonflies in the larval stage are used by various shell and weak crustaceans, for example, dafium and cyclops.
Nymphs grow and develop, with each new molding of the wings becomes more pronounced, and Imago leaves from the larger of last age. Those who wish to make pictorial photos of dragonflies can count on meeting with insects all summer.
The life of Imago lasts from several days to 2 months. Separate species in the IMago stage live about six months.
Types of dragonflies
Some species of modern dragonflies are extremely numerous, others are on the verge of extinction or have already been extinct. However, the evolution of these ancient insects continues and Odonatologists periodically describe previously unknown views. The most interesting deserve special attention.
Dragonfly Flat (Libellula Depressa)
The dragonfly is flat differs from his relatives by the fact that her abdomen is noticeably flattened and expanded. Dragonfly flat does not live in dirty water bodies
Redwelt Nymph (Pyrrhosoma Nymphula)
Dragonfly with a variety of names, among whom it is worth noting the arrow of the Surikovaya and Flashing-Nymph.
Very beautiful dragonfly with a fiery-red body of 3.3-3.6 cm. It lives in Eurasia, Transcaucasia and in the North-West Africa. It is found about overgrown and flowing reservoirs. Interestingly, the male accompanies the female for laying eggs.
Dage Horned (Ophiogomphus Cecilia)
Large dragonfly, length of up to 5.8 cm of olive-green color, the abdomen of which is obedorated with black rings. It received its name due to the growth on the back of the head, resembling horns.
Snaddles Horned (Other Dragonflies) live in Eurasia on the shores quiet rivers And streams, where they have individual hunting grounds.
Arctic grandmother (Somatochlora Arctica)
Dragonfly, choosing extreme conditions Habitat: Northern Europe, Far East And Siberia.
This dragonfly grows up to 5.1 cm long, her body casts green metal glitter. On 2 and 3 segments, the females abdomen clearly visible large yellow spots. Completed in Taiga, Tundra, Alpine Mountains. Nymphs develop 2-3 years in sphagnum swamps and other standing reservoirs.
Bolboat Boltonii (CorduleGaster Boltonii)
Other Dragonfly Name - Cordulgaster Ring - beautiful insect With contrasting color from alternating black and yellow rings. This is a large dragonfly growing up to 9 cm in length with a wings scope of about 10.5 cm.
The view is widespread in Eurasia and North Africa in the vicinity of rivers and lakes.
Belonos Doubt (Leucorrhinia Dubia)
Like all Belonosov, the face of dragonfly white colorBut the upper part of the abdomen is decorated with bright spots of orange color. Sizes are modest, not more than 3.6 cm.
Dragonfly doubtful inhabit peatlands from the north of Europe to Siberia. Russia meets almost everywhere, with the exception of the Far Eastern region.
Dragonfly of the species of Belonos dubious, male. 
Pairing a pair of dragonfly of the species Belonos dubious. 
Photo Dragonfly of other types:
Dragonfly is a two-color marsh (leucorrhinia pectoralis), female. 
Dragonfly and man
Translated by S. english title Dragongles means "dragonfly" (dragonfly). In medieval Europe, these insects did not love, identified with witches and snakes, they considered the devil satellites.
In Asia, attitude towards dragonfly is the opposite. For the Japanese dragonfly - the symbol of the imperial power and military valve. In the past, Honsu Island was called Akitsumima, which means "island-dragonfly". Among the population ancient China The "Bamboo Dragonfly" toy was popular - a propeller on a pin, which was started using a wound cord.
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