Dragonflies and Damselflies: A Life's Journey from Water to the Sky

Bug Banter with the Xerces Society

When we see a dragonfly, we normally see adults, which are capable of impressive aerobatics and have astonishing eyesight. Yet these fearsome aerial predators began life underwater, and when they undergo the transformation from nymph to adult they also change from water to air. Dragonflies truly are amazing!

Joining us to talk about these incredible animals is Dr. Jessica Ware from the American Museum of Natural History in New York, where she is an Associate Curator and the current Division Chair in the Division of Invertebrate Zoology. Jessica’s research focuses on the evolution of behavioral and physiological adaptations in insects, with an emphasis on how these occur in dragonflies and their close relatives, damselflies. Her research group uses genetics to study the evolutionary relationships between species and uses these tools to inform their work on reproductive, social, and flight behaviors in insects.

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