Dragonfly on Red Maple

There are more than 5,000 species of dragonflies. Dragonflies don't have teeth. But they do have very sharp and strong jaws. They don't typically just bite humans unless caught and defensively try to escape. They can fly up to 35 mph. And can fly forward and backward, up and down and even hover and rotate 360 degrees in place. They frequently catch their meals in mid-flight. Their head area is made up almost entirely of compound eyes, giving the dragonfly 360 degree vision. Dragonflies eat biting flies and mosquitos, sometimes hundreds a day. That is a real service to those of us who are annoyed by those nuisance insects.

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