Fun Blue Dasher Facts For Kids
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Are you fascinated by dragonflies, and do you want to find out more about the blue dasher? This article contains a multitude of blue dasher dragonfly fun facts!
This article will tell you everything you need to know about these flying insects, from their appearance to their diet, or why they are sometimes called blue pirates.
Blue dashers are a species of dragonflies, meaning they are a part of the libellulidae family. The blue dasher male is recognizable by its bright blue body with a dark tip, while the blue dasher female has a black and yellow striped abdomen and thorax and tends to be browner in color.
Males have green eyes while females have red eyes. Before they mature, blue dashers live under the water as naiads.
The species is known for its incredible flying ability. Read on to find out more blue dasher dragonfly interesting facts!
If you'd like to learn more about other insects, check out the red paper wasp and the damselfly.
Blue Dasher Interesting Facts
What type of animal is a Blue Dasher?
A blue dasher is a dragonfly.
What class of animal does a Blue Dasher belong to?
The blue dasher belongs to the class of insects.
How many Blue Dashers are there in the world?
Although it is hard to know exactly how many blue dashers currently live in the world, their conservation is not a concern, which implies a healthy and abundant population.
Where does a Blue Dasher live?
Wetlands.
What is a Blue Dasher's habitat?
Blue dashers can be found in a wide variety of habitats, which generally include a body of water such as a lake, pond, river, or stream. They tend to favor warmer areas, staying away from high elevation and colder temperatures. At night, adult blue dashers roost in trees.
It is thought that climate change is helping the spread of this species into new areas: the coloration of blue dashers' wings can be an indicator of where the species is found. Individuals in warmer regions tend to have lighter-colored wings than their counterparts living in cooler areas.
Who do Blue Dashers live with?
The blue dasher is a territorial species, especially male blue dashers. A bigger and more powerful blue dasher male reigns over certain breeding grounds and can drive away smaller males, which also helps the species' dispersal into new territories.
How long does a Blue Dasher live?
Blue dashers can live for several years. The larvae live in water for up to two years after hatching as the female blue dasher lays eggs underwater. Once they are mature, they exit the water and can fly like adult dragonflies.
How do they reproduce?
As dragonflies, blue dashers are oviparous, meaning they lay eggs to reproduce. Males and females close their wings during the mating process.
To lay their eggs, females come close to a body of water and dip their abdomen into the water. During this process, males tend to standby and guard the females until the fertilization is done to avoid attacks by other male blue dashers.
What is their conservation status?
The blue dasher dragonfly is classified as a species of least concern in terms of its conservation, meaning it has a stable and healthy population. Climate change is thought to help its spread into new areas as they grow warmer.
However, they are vulnerable to habitat destruction: their presence is a sign of a healthy ecosystem. Global warming also has an impact on blue dasher larvae such as their earlier emergence and a lower survival rate, which could lead to a decline in the population number with time.
Blue Dasher Fun Facts
What do Blue Dashers look like?
Male and female adult blue dashers look different. Both have four wings with dark streaks within them, but males are generally bright blue from head to abdomen with a black tip, whereas females tend to be brown in color and have a black and yellow abdomen with a yellow/green thorax.
Both males and females have large metallic eyes which occupy most of their heads, although the females' eyes are red in color while the males have green eyes. Females have a slightly shorter abdomen than males.
Naiads and young blue dashers do not develop the bright blue color immediately: they are smaller and thinner than females but similar in color.
How cute are they?
Being a dragonfly, blue dashers are not traditionally considered cute. Rather, they are beautiful and fascinating creatures, especially captivating thanks to the vibrant blue color on the abdomen of blue dasher males.
How do they communicate?
It is not currently known how insects such as dragonflies communicate.
How big is a Blue Dasher?
Blue dashers are very small insects, usually measuring less than 2 inches, which is about three times smaller than a common dormouse.
How fast can a Blue Dasher fly?
Thanks to their two sets of wings which work independently, blue dashers can fly exceptionally fast for an insect. The wings are attached to muscles in the thorax and abdomen which enables them to change direction mid-air by modifying the angle of each wing individually.
It is thought this species can fly at speeds in the range of 18 to 35 mph.
As well as this incredible flight capacity, the strength of their wings also means they can hover in the same spot for more than a minute. When they spot prey, they will launch an attack and catch it mid-air.
How much does a Blue Dasher weigh?
The blue dasher is a small dragonfly, meaning it only weighs a few grams.
What are their male and female names of the species?
There are no specific denominations for males and females of the blue dasher species.
What would you call a baby Blue Dasher?
When they are born, blue dashers are known as larvae. When they are fledging and living underwater, they are called naiads.
What do they eat?
Blue dashers are carnivorous and are known as vicious predators who need to consume up to 10% of their body weight every day. The species also has a very strong jaw and serrated mandibles which allow it to rip apart any prey it catches.
Adult dragonflies can only eat when they fly, meaning if they are injured and unable to fly, they could starve to death.
The adult blue dasher will prey on small insects such as mosquitoes or other insect larvae. Their incredible flight capabilities mean they are able to catch most insects mid-air. Before it becomes mature, the blue dasher naiad lives underwater for up to two years and will prey on small fish, tadpoles, and other larvae.
Are they dangerous?
Blue dashers are far from dangerous for humans: in fact, they eat a lot of the insects that we find annoying, such as mosquitoes! Their presence is also an indicator of a healthy ecosystem, so it is in our interest to protect them.
Would they make a good pet?
Blue dashers would not make a good pet as they need plenty of space to fly about. Any small captive environment would mean they are unable to fly freely.
Did you know...
The blue dasher is part of the Odonata class, which comes from the Greek for 'toothed ones' because of their serrated mandibles.
The blue dasher is sometimes called the blue pirate because of its vibrant blue color and predatory behavior.
When they live underwater, blue dasher naiads breathe through gills, just like fish.
Blue dashers can stand on their heads: during hot summer days, individuals can sit on their perches with their heads down to control their internal temperature. When they do so, they hold their abdomen up and position their body according to the sun, making it look like they're doing a handstand.
The dragonfly is a strongly symbolic insect: it is thought to bring good luck to fishermen and is given magical attributes in pagan cultures. The blue dasher is sometimes called 'blue emperor dragonfly' and symbolizes loyalty, wisdom, and faith.
How is their blue color produced?
The blue color on the male blue dasher is produced by a process called pruinescence. The blue dasher's exoskeleton becomes blue as a sign of threat to other male dragonflies.
What is unique about dragonflies?
The dragonfly is unique amongst insects for its very strong and independent wings, which make it incredibly fast.
Adult dragonflies are only able to eat while flying, which means if they are injured, they could starve to death.
Dragonfly heads are composed purely of their eyes! As such, they have an almost 360-degree view, making them feared predators. They can detect motion almost anywhere except right behind them.
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other arthropods including the luna moth and the monarch butterfly.
You can even occupy yourself at home by drawing one of our Blue Dasher coloring pages.
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Based in London, Mina enjoys discovering novel activities, places, and adventures to fill her days with. She has a Bachelor's degree in Linguistics from the University of Cambridge and a Masters's degree in Investigative Reporting from the Birbeck, University of London. Alongside this, she has a keen interest in children's literature and regularly shares her passion for culture with the children she babysits, making sure to keep up-to-date with the latest family movies, plays, and exhibitions. Having traveled extensively throughout Europe and beyond, Mina has a deep appreciation for exploring new locations and making new connections with people from all walks of life.
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