What are the enemies of the dragonfly?
What enemies do Dragonflies have? Dragonflies do have enemies. Among the species that catch and eat adult dragonflies and damselflies are birds (e.g. Wagtails and Hobbies), Spiders (many damselflies are caught in webs), Frogs, and larger species of dragonflies (which catch and eat other dragonflies and damselflies).
What is dragonflies biggest enemy?
10 Astounding Things You Should Know About Dragonflies Fish, frogs, newts, and other larger aquatic creatures eat the dragonfly nymphs. Adult dragonflies are food for birds, lizards, bats, and even spiders!
What enemies do Dragonflies have?
Dragonflies do have enemies. Among the species that catch and eat adult dragonflies and damselflies are birds (e.g. Wagtails and Hobbies), Spiders (many damselflies are caught in webs), Frogs, and larger species of dragonflies (which catch and eat other dragonflies and damselflies). In the larval stage, which is spent underwater, they are preyed on by fish, frogs, toads and newts, other water invertebrates – and Kingfishers (see photo below).
Their defences include their excellent eyesight and flying skills which can help them to evade capture. Some are coloured black and yellow, or black and red, which is the universal warning colouration and may deter some of the bird predators.
In the mind of an Entomologist, dragonflies have no enemies. In fact, no animal has enemies, just predators. Predators do not hunt and eat other animals because they see them as enemies. They eat for the necessity to survive.
Dragonflies are captured and eaten by tree lizards, toads, frogs, and in the insect world, by praying mantis. Certainly other organisms can use dragonflies as a source of food, but dragonflies themselves prey upon flying insects, such as mosquitoes and fruit flies, while in flight, with great efficiency.
Predation is a fact of life for most animals, whether they’re monkeys, flying insects or ground squirrels. Dragonflies (Anisoptera) certainly aren’t exempt from the woes of predation, with an assortment of common threats. Strangely enough, some of these big insects’ predators aren’t even animals; they’re plants.
Predators of Juveniles
Juvenile and mature dragonflies have different sets of predators. In the aquatic larval stage, their primary predators are ducks, amphibians such as toads and newts, fish and bigger damselfly and dragonfly larvae. When the nymphs sense danger, they often attempt to dodge predation by pretending to be dead or by swimming away quickly. When predators clutch onto them, nymphs can escape by allowing their limbs to fall off. These limbs grow back during molting.The nymphs evade predation by hiding among plants as well.
Predators of Adults
Adult dragonflies must dodge a broad assortment of predators, specifically arthropods, reptiles, fish such as bass, tiny mammals such as water shrews, frogs and fellow insects. Bees routinely go after mature dragonflies. When it comes to flying, dragonflies are highly agile creatures that can quickly flee danger, and birds are usually far too sluggish to catch them. Many types of dragonflies have skin that changes to look like their environments — a means of staying under hungry predators’ radars.
Plants Sometimes Eat Dragonflies
A lot of actual “things” make dragonflies part of their diet, too. Sundew (Drosera) plants are small meat-eating organisms that seize invertebrates — such as dragonflies — and then promptly digest them to take in their nutrients. Insects provide sundew plants with vital nitrogen. The plants retrieve dragonflies with the help of their tentacles, which are equipped with glands that secrete a gooey substance that reliably secures insects when they make their way onto the surfaces of the plants’ leaves. Working together, the tentacles and foliage then proceed to surround the trapped insects on all sides, initiating the digestion process.
