Why dragonflies swarming

I was driving along a side street in Shorewood and yard after yard was enchanted by the incredible swarms of dragonflies clouding the already-dim sky.

Being the dragonfly nut that I am, a wave of great appreciation for the gift of this moment washed over me, and I wondered if the neighbors chatting a few houses down or the kids playing next to the street noticed it too. For anyone that has experienced similar foraging flights of dragonflies, especially during migration, you know how intense yet fleeting these interactions are.

The dragonflies will congregate in one area, dipping and diving and somehow avoiding colliding with one another in their seemingly blind frenzy. After these moments of mad hustle and bustle, the cloud of energy disperses.

Take a moment to wave goodbye as these insects continue on their journey southward, because we will begin to see less of them as summer draws to a close and autumn sets in. The Common Green Darner Anax junius is one of a few species of migratory dragonfly in Wisconsin that we begin seeing in early spring, and that we begin saying goodbye to in late summer.

It is likely a dragonfly, if not the dragonfly, people think of when presented with the term, and is unmistakable. Not only are they large and easy to spot, but their presence is commanding as they patrol their territories and hover overhead.

And then I tell myself yes, they are migratory, but some of them are partially migratory. Meaning some stay, some go. Well, this is also the case with Common Green Darners and a few other dragonfly species. The resident adults lay their eggs in the summertime, which then hatch and begin developing into larval instars until temperatures drop too low and they transition to overwintering until spring. What is normally an ephemeral event that any one person might be lucky to see once in their lifetime becomes downright common when you have thousands of people sharing information together.

Project participants are turning an epic data collection task into a project that is easily managed by one person. I am unbelievably happy that this project has been so successful, and I believe my participants are having a positive experience as well. Thank you for your interest in my project! If you would like to participate, consider reading more about dragonfly swarms on the Dragonfly Swarm Information page.

Then, keep an eye out for swarms between May and October! With your help, I will be able to collect enough data to tell a really great science story about dragonfly swarms!

I am tracking swarms so I can learn more about this interesting behavior. Please visit my Report a Dragonfly Swarm page to fill out the official report form. It only takes a few minutes! Visit my dragonfly swarm information page for my entire collection of posts about dragonfly swarms!

Like this citizen science project and wish to share it with others? Consider using the official Dragonfly Swarm Project brochure to help spread the word! Just make sure you tape all three sides shut before mailing. In order to maintain documentation this can be important when writing grant proposals and what not , I need to keep track of how many of the brochures are made available when and where.

Just send me a message and I will send you the link to the PDF, usually within 24 hours. Please note that I am unable to send printed copies of the brochure at this time. I think where I live must be a favorite of dragonflies.

I have had what I think was migratory swarm go by my front door at least 2 years and static swarms that last for weeks also. Last summer there were thousands of dragonflies in my fields in my front yard. One field we cut for hay and it is about 2 acres. The other field is about 3 acres and the llamas graze in it so part is short grass and part is lush potty areas that the grass grows tall.

For a couple of weeks there were thousands of the dragonflies and birds too. Not so many birds but enough I thought they were eating the dragonflies. I was happy to see on some of your info that the birds were probably just eating the same bugs as the dragonflies. I want to report next summer if they return. I really have enjoyed your site. I live 40 miles south of St Louis, Mo. Pingback: Hopefully not as rare as a dragonfly swarm « Punky Mama. Pingback: August 21 — Swarm Outside — Little facts about science.

Not very many! Our house is located by a beaver pond and we are so lucky to see an abundance of nature in all shapes and sizes, blue dragonflies, hummers, birds of all kinds. However, this year we have some new visitors …… the fabulous red dragonfly, which we have not seen before. I have read that their territory is usually to the northern California border.

So, what are they doing here? Pingback: Dazzling Dragonflies Green Acorns. I live in Santa Clarita CA and just saw a swarm.

They seemed to be flying in one direction and not randomly. I found it interesting and looked the phenomenon up on line and discovered this site. Thanks for letting me know! And I think anytime you get an insect that's big enough to turn the tides on birds, that's really pretty cool.

I want to know where the behavior forms in the first place, how that swarming pattern occurs, what are they doing, why are they doing it and how it benefits our environment. I was doing aquatic work in Arizona and was around a pond that didn't have any vegetation. So, we really never saw dragonflies. But one day my co-worker and I showed up and there were hundreds and hundreds of dragonflies there flying in a big swarm.

And I got really excited about that, which is why I have my project in the first place. I think it's too early to say. But with a recent hurricane that came through, it's likely that the increase of rain, any sort of localized flooding increases the number of mosquitoes and other small insects. And the dragonflies are flying in and taking care of that while they're on the move southward.