>near 100% hunting success rate>Survived multiple mass extinctions, including the Great Dying; predated and outlived the dinosaurs>is still one of the most majestic animals, a perfect marriage of form and function>is one of the only insects that is not only not hated, but widely liked by humanityThis is the ultimate lifeform, perfection as an organism. A masterpiece of evolution.
If they're so great why are they so scarce?
>>5113353theyre literally everywhere where fresh water is found
Dragonflies like to perch on clothes lines.
I doubt the hunting rate, I see them hunt some weird flies every year and the flies would fly near the water and do instant drops, making the dragonflies miss or fall into the water.
>>5113353they absolutely are not,you retard
Do the larger one have more brain power? The bigger they are, the harder they're coaxed into landing on your hand :(
>>5114247No but large dragonflies tend to fly uninterruptedly for hours
>>5114249Looks like the big ones have favorite perching spots so you have to stalk them and then become the spot
>>5113342The only way to attract them is to have a pond, right? a big one?
>>5114275doesn't have to be a large one. a simple, well-planted barrel pond will already attract them and you'll be having plenty of nymphs growing up in there in no time
>>5114275Mine is used by five different species as a reproduction site and it's not very big. All you need is a lot of native aquatic plants and no fish.
>>5113342they perch on my fishing rod sometimes
>>5113342>is one of the only insects that is not only not hated, but widely liked by humanityIn Europe, dragonflies have often been seen as sinister. Some English vernacular names, such as "horse-stinger",[38] "devil's darning needle", and "ear cutter", link them with evil or injury.[39] Swedish folklore holds that the devil uses dragonflies to weigh people's souls.[33] The Norwegian name for dragonflies is Øyenstikker ("eye-poker"), and in Portugal, they are sometimes called tira-olhos ("eyes-snatcher"). They are often associated with snakes, as in the Welsh name gwas-y-neidr, "adder's servant".[39] The Southern United States term "snake doctor" refers to a folk belief that dragonflies follow snakes around and stitch them back together if they are injured.[40]
>>5114842>dragonflies follow snakes around and stitch them back together if they are injured
>>5114851It's a tough job, but someone's got to do it.
>>5114863Gotta boop that snoot
Look at this carnivore go
>>5114868he's bringing down the successful hunt percentage...
>>5113973big dragon does not want you to know this.
I've twice had the privilege of witnessing a swarm of his hundreds of dragonflies feasting on mosquitoes above my pool in the summer. It's the coolest thing I've ever seen.
In other news, they learned to walk
>>5113439and sometimes not even that, considering i still see flame skimmers here in the arizona desert where the only open water is people's backyard pools
oh no
>>5115572In their larval stage the opposite is true
>>5115595creepy<
>>5113342revived griffin flies when?
>>5115770very curious how the evolution of their larval stage came to be
>>5113342OP, ever since I learned more about them, and dug deeper into the mechanics of their flight, they became my favorite. I am an aircraft mechanic and have a history with fighter jets. These are incredible creatures. The individual control over their wings combined with their flight intelligence gives them the ability to fly in literally any direction and high speed, stop on a dime, and go the opposite way. Helicopters are a coughing baby in a mud pit comparatively. Their wings are corrugated because their method of kill is to slam into other bugs at crazy speeds then chomp them to bits. The corrugation means they can be folded, slammed, bent any which way and always reform. It also creates air pockets for better aerodynamics. Their eyes wrap up and around their head, allowing for a near full sphere of vision. They also are found on every continent, in every metallic color, and have been tracked migrating across the atlatic because they fuckin felt like it. I will never not stop to watch the best hunter on the planet fly by me. I work on an airport, and they are the best pilots around.
>>5113342invertebrates are unstoppable
>>5118099>They also are found on every continent, in every metallic color, and have been tracked migrating across the atlatic because they fuckin felt like it.>I will never not stop to watch the best hunter on the planet fly by me. I work on an airport, and they are the best pilots around.based
