The name comes from their fierce jaws, which they use to catch flies (and other winged insects).

Dragonflies are ancient insects. They were around before the dinosaurs! These ancient dragonflies may have been considerably larger than those we see today. Although, other than being smaller, modern-day dragonflies do not look very different from their ancestors.

The oldest known dragonfly specimen lived 300 million years ago and had a wingspan of eight inches. The largest known dragonfly had a wingspan of 24 inches (two feet). The largest dragonfly today has a wing-span just over seven inches, and lives in South America.

Absolutely! In fact, dragonflies are sometimes called the 'mosquito hawk' because they catch and eat so many mosquitoes. Always on the hunt, dragonflies consume gnats, flies, and mosquitoes.

Dragonflies can out-maneuver their prey with their ability to fly in any direction. But dragonflies also have the advantage of excellent eyesight. Each of their two large eyes is made up of thousands of six-sided units. With all of these smaller eyes, a dragonfly can detect even the slightest movement. Just try to sneak up and catch one!

A dragonfly's eyes are so large that they actually touch in the back. Their eyes are their greatest assets. Adults have a visual field of almost 360 degrees and extremely mobile heads, allowing them to see practically everywhere but directly behind them. Dragonflies can see a wide range of color, including ultraviolet. And they can see light flicker at 80 times a second (twice that of humans).