Stages of Dragonfly Life Cycle

“Egg, nymph, and adult: the three stages of the dragonfly life cycle.” The life cycle of a dragon consists of three distinct stages, which are discussed below:

Dragonfly Eggs

Dragonflies begin their lives as eggs in or near water. After mating, a female dragonfly often lays eggs while holding the male or while the male protects her from predators or other males.

Female dragonflies lay hundreds of eggs in batches over a few days or weeks. They lay two types of eggs – Endophytic eggs and exophytic eggs. Endophytic eggs are elongated and are laid into the plant material like stems, leaves, rotten wood or mud or close to the surface of water. These eggs are laid by emerald damselflies, migrant hawkers and golden-ringed dragonflies. Exophytic eggs are round and are laid in a jelly-like substance which is deposited loosely into water. These eggs are laid by dragonflies belonging to species – emerald dragonflies, chasers, skimmers and darters.

Larvae Stage in Dragonfly

Dragonflies spend most of their lives as larvae underwater. Larval development typically takes one or two years, but ranges from 2–3 months (as in emerald damselflies) to more than five years (as in Golden-ringed Dragonfly). Development takes longer in cooler waters where food is scarcer, whereas in warm waters there may be a new generation every year. They may molt up to 14 times to achieve the full growth they require. All dragonfly larvae have six legs (as do adults), wing-sheaths, an extendable hinged jaw (labium) that can shoot out in an instant and catch prey.

Emergence and Adulthood in Dragonfly

Adulthood is triggered by a major event in dragonflies called emergence. Unlike butterflies, dragonflies do not go through a cocoon stage during their lifespan, but instead emerge from a final molting stage outside the water. The final-stage larvae sit in shallow water, near the margins, for several days, getting ready for their final moult and starts to breathe air. The triggers for this phenomenon are day length and temperature, which vary by species. Dragonfly larvae fly when they are ready to find plants to prepare to emerge as adults. The dragonfly’s first flight is weak and typically covers only a few meters.

Adult Stage of Dragonfly

Tenerals are newly-emerged adult dragonflies that are weak in flight and pale in color. As their body and wings harden they begin to hunt for food whenever the weather is optimum for them. They spend about a week feeding away from water and gradually acquire adult colouration and sexual maturity. When the adults become mature, they move back to the water to breed.

Dragonfly has a complex life cycle which consists of three different stages such as egg, nymph (larva), and adult. It undergoes incomplete metamorphosis in which the larval stage transitions into an adult without undergoing a pupal stage. The time taken for the entire life cycle of a dragonfly varies, depending on environmental conditions and the characteristics of the species. Mating in dragonflies is unique and the lifespan of an adult dragonfly is of maximum eight weeks but generally, they live for 1-2 weeks.