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Summer
2000
PHOTO
ESSAY (continued)
Appreciating
Predators----
Green dragonflies
Male
green darners catch the females behind the head with specially
adapted pincers. For insemination, she will curve her tail
up to accept his secondary penis (it’s a complicated
process), and they’ll fly in a loop. Then, while she
lays her eggs on submerged vegetation, he will continue
to hold on to her, so no other male can add sperm to compete
with his. The young dragonflies are predators under water;
the adults eat flying insects.
Photo by Jim Flynn/Root Resources.
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