October 05, 2000 - Dragonfly departureIOA • The Suffolk Times • October 5, 2000
Draaonfl
departure
igratory `darning needles'
— Barbara and 1 have been aomg some
county park hopping. Last week it was
Shinnecock East in Southampton and
this week we
went to Cupsogue
Beach in West - Focus
hampton, where
we had lunch out ON
in the open on NATURE
one of the park by Paul
benches. It was Stoutenburgh
one of those clear,
wonderful fall
days and the temperature was still
warm enough to enjoy eating out.
All along the edge of the park the
groundsel or high tide bush was just
breaking out. This is the bush you see
around the edges of our salt marshes.
It can also be seen out in open fields.
This is because its blossom, which
turns into a silky parachute seed,
drifts about and quickly establishes
itself almost anywhere. It is particular-
ly noticeable at this time of the year
when it appears as a white haze
around the edges of our creeks.
As we sat there enjoying our turkey
salad sandwiches and cold drinks, we
noticed darning needles moving west-
ward. Darning needle is a common
name for both dragonflies and their
daintier cousins the damselflies, two
branches of the insect order Odonata.
To tell the difference between the two
kinds of darning needles, the dam-
selfly folds its wings over its back
when it lands and the dragonfly has
both wines extended when resting.
are taking their leave in droves
Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh
Why is it that most people think dragonflies bite or sting, which of
course they do not? Most dragonflies will die with the first frost, the
exception being the larger ones, which will migrate south to where
their favorite food of small flying insects can be found.
Doing the dragonfly numbers
The dragonflies were traveling by ii
such numbers that I knew it had to b<
some sort of migration. We started to
count. I kept close watch of the time
and in one minute we had over 50 big
dragonflies pass by. They were all the
same size and kind. Later when I
looked it up I found it to be the com-
mon green aarner aragonny.
We had been looking over the
marsh toward the bay area_ and so we
decided to swing around to the south
and check the dunes. Here we found
approximately the same number mov-
ing through,.making a total of over 101
dragonflies every minute (6,000 an
hour). We repeated this counting two
or three more times to be sure we
were being accurate.
It was unbelievable.
Since we felt it
might sound impossi
ble, we decided to
check further op our
numbers and were
pleased to find in a
article called
"Hunting Dragons"
in The Nature
Conservancy maga-
zine, "in September
of 1992 a swarm of
dragonflies passed a
hawk- counting sta-
tion at Cape May,
New Jersey, cruising
for hours past aston-
ished birdwatchers in
waves of up to 1,200
aragontlies per
minute." That was a
lot more than we had
seen but nevertheless
confirmed that cer-
tain dragonflies do migrate.
The dragonflies we were seeing
were so big that off in the distance
they looked like little birds coming at
us. They actually made a shadow on
the ground as they passed by us. We
watched this migration for an hour or
so and then at 1:30 sharp it stopped. I
couldn't believe it! It was as if some-
one had turned a switch. There'wasnl
a dragonfly to be seen.
During the hour we spent there at
the park monarch butterflies were
drifting by, along with mourning c17
butterflies, which I thought was kind
of unusual. I had always thought
mourning cloaks stayed here year -
round for we see them on warm win-
ter days when they come out to
stretch their wings.
Dragonflies have gotten a bad
name, I'm afraid. People think they
sting your or bite you, which they do
not. utlner wives' tales tell about then
sewing up little boys' ears with their
needles (therefore the common name
darning needle) which, of course is
pure folly but interesting.
There are over 400 different vari-
eties of odonates (dragonflies and
damselflies) listed in the United State
and Canada and it is only the biggest
of the dragonflies, as far as I could
find out, that migrate; the rest perish
as the cold weather moves in, for their
gnats and other flying insects, all fall
prey to the cold of winter. These big
dragonflies seem to know better and
head south where the mosquitoes and
bugs still fly. It seemed they knew that
within a few days there would be a
cold front moving in and the tempera-
ture would drop into the low 40s. So
that was why they were on their way
south. It sure looked that way as they
zoomed by us, occa-
sionally darting off
course to pick up an
insect and then con-
tinuing on their way.
Darning needles
eat on the wing. They
capture their prey
with their specially
designed feet, which
are really not meant
for walking. They
catch their insect prey
using their feet as a
basket -like trap. Then
they bring it up to
their mouth and
devour it while flying.
The darning needles
that perish with the
cold weather have
already laid their
eggs, which have
developed into aquat-
ic nymphs in the
muddy ponds and
streams, where they will stay tnougn
the winter.
These aquatic nymphs are vicious
feeders and will eat anything that
moves, including their own kind.
After they make -it through the winter
in the bottom of the pond, they will
come out of the water and climb up
the stem of a plant. After a short
while the change -over will take place
where their skin splits open and the
newly formed dragonfly emerges in its
familiar form.
These darning needles are unique in
the insect world in the sense that they
can fly in any direction— up, down,
forward, backward and sideways. All
with lightning speed. They're so sophis-
ticated in flight that aeronautical engi-
neers funded by the U.S. Air Force
actually studied their maneuvers to see
what they could learn from them.
Darning needles have one of the
world's finest pairs of compound eyes.
They can virtually see in all directions
at the same time. Combine the eye-
sight and the maneuverability and you
can see why mosquitoes, greenheads,
gnats and insects of all sorts fall prey
to them. They have become such effi-
cient hunters that they are known in
some places as mosquito hawks.
All of us have heard of those who
go out with binoculars and look for
birds, well, there is also a new group of
people who go out and hunt for drag-
onflies. They are called odonatists and
they even have a society called the
Dragonfly Society of America (DSA).
So if you're looking for something,
new to do, pick up, your binoculars
next spring and go looking for darning,
needles. Better yet; head south now
where the mosquitoes are and you are
bound to see dragonflies and dam-
selflies in all sorts of colors and
shapes. They are winged miracles
once you get to know them.
IOA • The Suffolk Times • October 5, 2000
Draaonfl
departure
igratory `darning needles'
— Barbara and 1 have been aomg some
county park hopping. Last week it was
Shinnecock East in Southampton and
this week we
went to Cupsogue
Beach in West - Focus
hampton, where
we had lunch out ON
in the open on NATURE
one of the park by Paul
benches. It was Stoutenburgh
one of those clear,
wonderful fall
days and the temperature was still
warm enough to enjoy eating out.
All along the edge of the park the
groundsel or high tide bush was just
breaking out. This is the bush you see
around the edges of our salt marshes.
It can also be seen out in open fields.
This is because its blossom, which
turns into a silky parachute seed,
drifts about and quickly establishes
itself almost anywhere. It is particular-
ly noticeable at this time of the year
when it appears as a white haze
around the edges of our creeks.
As we sat there enjoying our turkey
salad sandwiches and cold drinks, we
noticed darning needles moving west-
ward. Darning needle is a common
name for both dragonflies and their
daintier cousins the damselflies, two
branches of the insect order Odonata.
To tell the difference between the two
kinds of darning needles, the dam-
selfly folds its wings over its back
when it lands and the dragonfly has
both wines extended when resting.
are taking their leave in droves
Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh
Why is it that most people think dragonflies bite or sting, which of
course they do not? Most dragonflies will die with the first frost, the
exception being the larger ones, which will migrate south to where
their favorite food of small flying insects can be found.
Doing the dragonfly numbers
The dragonflies were traveling by ii
such numbers that I knew it had to b<
some sort of migration. We started to
count. I kept close watch of the time
and in one minute we had over 50 big
dragonflies pass by. They were all the
same size and kind. Later when I
looked it up I found it to be the com-
mon green aarner aragonny.
We had been looking over the
marsh toward the bay area_ and so we
decided to swing around to the south
and check the dunes. Here we found
approximately the same number mov-
ing through,.making a total of over 101
dragonflies every minute (6,000 an
hour). We repeated this counting two
or three more times to be sure we
were being accurate.
It was unbelievable.
Since we felt it
might sound impossi
ble, we decided to
check further op our
numbers and were
pleased to find in a
article called
"Hunting Dragons"
in The Nature
Conservancy maga-
zine, "in September
of 1992 a swarm of
dragonflies passed a
hawk- counting sta-
tion at Cape May,
New Jersey, cruising
for hours past aston-
ished birdwatchers in
waves of up to 1,200
aragontlies per
minute." That was a
lot more than we had
seen but nevertheless
confirmed that cer-
tain dragonflies do migrate.
The dragonflies we were seeing
were so big that off in the distance
they looked like little birds coming at
us. They actually made a shadow on
the ground as they passed by us. We
watched this migration for an hour or
so and then at 1:30 sharp it stopped. I
couldn't believe it! It was as if some-
one had turned a switch. There'wasnl
a dragonfly to be seen.
During the hour we spent there at
the park monarch butterflies were
drifting by, along with mourning c17
butterflies, which I thought was kind
of unusual. I had always thought
mourning cloaks stayed here year -
round for we see them on warm win-
ter days when they come out to
stretch their wings.
Dragonflies have gotten a bad
name, I'm afraid. People think they
sting your or bite you, which they do
not. utlner wives' tales tell about then
sewing up little boys' ears with their
needles (therefore the common name
darning needle) which, of course is
pure folly but interesting.
There are over 400 different vari-
eties of odonates (dragonflies and
damselflies) listed in the United State
and Canada and it is only the biggest
of the dragonflies, as far as I could
find out, that migrate; the rest perish
as the cold weather moves in, for their
gnats and other flying insects, all fall
prey to the cold of winter. These big
dragonflies seem to know better and
head south where the mosquitoes and
bugs still fly. It seemed they knew that
within a few days there would be a
cold front moving in and the tempera-
ture would drop into the low 40s. So
that was why they were on their way
south. It sure looked that way as they
zoomed by us, occa-
sionally darting off
course to pick up an
insect and then con-
tinuing on their way.
Darning needles
eat on the wing. They
capture their prey
with their specially
designed feet, which
are really not meant
for walking. They
catch their insect prey
using their feet as a
basket -like trap. Then
they bring it up to
their mouth and
devour it while flying.
The darning needles
that perish with the
cold weather have
already laid their
eggs, which have
developed into aquat-
ic nymphs in the
muddy ponds and
streams, where they will stay tnougn
the winter.
These aquatic nymphs are vicious
feeders and will eat anything that
moves, including their own kind.
After they make -it through the winter
in the bottom of the pond, they will
come out of the water and climb up
the stem of a plant. After a short
while the change -over will take place
where their skin splits open and the
newly formed dragonfly emerges in its
familiar form.
These darning needles are unique in
the insect world in the sense that they
can fly in any direction— up, down,
forward, backward and sideways. All
with lightning speed. They're so sophis-
ticated in flight that aeronautical engi-
neers funded by the U.S. Air Force
actually studied their maneuvers to see
what they could learn from them.
Darning needles have one of the
world's finest pairs of compound eyes.
They can virtually see in all directions
at the same time. Combine the eye-
sight and the maneuverability and you
can see why mosquitoes, greenheads,
gnats and insects of all sorts fall prey
to them. They have become such effi-
cient hunters that they are known in
some places as mosquito hawks.
All of us have heard of those who
go out with binoculars and look for
birds, well, there is also a new group of
people who go out and hunt for drag-
onflies. They are called odonatists and
they even have a society called the
Dragonfly Society of America (DSA).
So if you're looking for something,
new to do, pick up, your binoculars
next spring and go looking for darning,
needles. Better yet; head south now
where the mosquitoes are and you are
bound to see dragonflies and dam-
selflies in all sorts of colors and
shapes. They are winged miracles
once you get to know them.
IOA • The Suffolk Times • October 5, 2000
Draaonfl
departure
igratory `darning needles'
— Barbara and 1 have been aomg some
county park hopping. Last week it was
Shinnecock East in Southampton and
this week we
went to Cupsogue
Beach in West - Focus
hampton, where
we had lunch out ON
in the open on NATURE
one of the park by Paul
benches. It was Stoutenburgh
one of those clear,
wonderful fall
days and the temperature was still
warm enough to enjoy eating out.
All along the edge of the park the
groundsel or high tide bush was just
breaking out. This is the bush you see
around the edges of our salt marshes.
It can also be seen out in open fields.
This is because its blossom, which
turns into a silky parachute seed,
drifts about and quickly establishes
itself almost anywhere. It is particular-
ly noticeable at this time of the year
when it appears as a white haze
around the edges of our creeks.
As we sat there enjoying our turkey
salad sandwiches and cold drinks, we
noticed darning needles moving west-
ward. Darning needle is a common
name for both dragonflies and their
daintier cousins the damselflies, two
branches of the insect order Odonata.
To tell the difference between the two
kinds of darning needles, the dam-
selfly folds its wings over its back
when it lands and the dragonfly has
both wines extended when resting.
are taking their leave in droves
Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh
Why is it that most people think dragonflies bite or sting, which of
course they do not? Most dragonflies will die with the first frost, the
exception being the larger ones, which will migrate south to where
their favorite food of small flying insects can be found.
Doing the dragonfly numbers
The dragonflies were traveling by ii
such numbers that I knew it had to b<
some sort of migration. We started to
count. I kept close watch of the time
and in one minute we had over 50 big
dragonflies pass by. They were all the
same size and kind. Later when I
looked it up I found it to be the com-
mon green aarner aragonny.
We had been looking over the
marsh toward the bay area_ and so we
decided to swing around to the south
and check the dunes. Here we found
approximately the same number mov-
ing through,.making a total of over 101
dragonflies every minute (6,000 an
hour). We repeated this counting two
or three more times to be sure we
were being accurate.
It was unbelievable.
Since we felt it
might sound impossi
ble, we decided to
check further op our
numbers and were
pleased to find in a
article called
"Hunting Dragons"
in The Nature
Conservancy maga-
zine, "in September
of 1992 a swarm of
dragonflies passed a
hawk- counting sta-
tion at Cape May,
New Jersey, cruising
for hours past aston-
ished birdwatchers in
waves of up to 1,200
aragontlies per
minute." That was a
lot more than we had
seen but nevertheless
confirmed that cer-
tain dragonflies do migrate.
The dragonflies we were seeing
were so big that off in the distance
they looked like little birds coming at
us. They actually made a shadow on
the ground as they passed by us. We
watched this migration for an hour or
so and then at 1:30 sharp it stopped. I
couldn't believe it! It was as if some-
one had turned a switch. There'wasnl
a dragonfly to be seen.
During the hour we spent there at
the park monarch butterflies were
drifting by, along with mourning c17
butterflies, which I thought was kind
of unusual. I had always thought
mourning cloaks stayed here year -
round for we see them on warm win-
ter days when they come out to
stretch their wings.
Dragonflies have gotten a bad
name, I'm afraid. People think they
sting your or bite you, which they do
not. utlner wives' tales tell about then
sewing up little boys' ears with their
needles (therefore the common name
darning needle) which, of course is
pure folly but interesting.
There are over 400 different vari-
eties of odonates (dragonflies and
damselflies) listed in the United State
and Canada and it is only the biggest
of the dragonflies, as far as I could
find out, that migrate; the rest perish
as the cold weather moves in, for their
gnats and other flying insects, all fall
prey to the cold of winter. These big
dragonflies seem to know better and
head south where the mosquitoes and
bugs still fly. It seemed they knew that
within a few days there would be a
cold front moving in and the tempera-
ture would drop into the low 40s. So
that was why they were on their way
south. It sure looked that way as they
zoomed by us, occa-
sionally darting off
course to pick up an
insect and then con-
tinuing on their way.
Darning needles
eat on the wing. They
capture their prey
with their specially
designed feet, which
are really not meant
for walking. They
catch their insect prey
using their feet as a
basket -like trap. Then
they bring it up to
their mouth and
devour it while flying.
The darning needles
that perish with the
cold weather have
already laid their
eggs, which have
developed into aquat-
ic nymphs in the
muddy ponds and
streams, where they will stay tnougn
the winter.
These aquatic nymphs are vicious
feeders and will eat anything that
moves, including their own kind.
After they make -it through the winter
in the bottom of the pond, they will
come out of the water and climb up
the stem of a plant. After a short
while the change -over will take place
where their skin splits open and the
newly formed dragonfly emerges in its
familiar form.
These darning needles are unique in
the insect world in the sense that they
can fly in any direction— up, down,
forward, backward and sideways. All
with lightning speed. They're so sophis-
ticated in flight that aeronautical engi-
neers funded by the U.S. Air Force
actually studied their maneuvers to see
what they could learn from them.
Darning needles have one of the
world's finest pairs of compound eyes.
They can virtually see in all directions
at the same time. Combine the eye-
sight and the maneuverability and you
can see why mosquitoes, greenheads,
gnats and insects of all sorts fall prey
to them. They have become such effi-
cient hunters that they are known in
some places as mosquito hawks.
All of us have heard of those who
go out with binoculars and look for
birds, well, there is also a new group of
people who go out and hunt for drag-
onflies. They are called odonatists and
they even have a society called the
Dragonfly Society of America (DSA).
So if you're looking for something,
new to do, pick up, your binoculars
next spring and go looking for darning,
needles. Better yet; head south now
where the mosquitoes are and you are
bound to see dragonflies and dam-
selflies in all sorts of colors and
shapes. They are winged miracles
once you get to know them.