CLOSED: Which is this Dragonfly... molting

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Dinu Mysore, India(Zone 10a) Mar 25, 2007

I found it in my garden. It was sitting on the wall and I saw this for the first time. Does it leave the old covering like some insects... I heard that the young ones live in water before they are ready.

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Dinu Mysore, India(Zone 10a) Mar 25, 2007

Covering left behind.

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fly_girl The Woodlands, TX(Zone 8b) Mar 26, 2007

Dinu, that is called the larval shell or exuvia. Is there water nearby?

I'm not sure what kind of dragonfly it is, may be in the skimmer species (family Libellulidae).

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Dinu Mysore, India(Zone 10a) Mar 27, 2007

Yes, I did see the young ones underwater and one of my friends that knew better told me they are young dragonflies. There is a water tank in our yard and that is where I had seen them. I wonder how does it come out of water? When it is fully grown? Let me know more.

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fly_girl The Woodlands, TX(Zone 8b) Mar 27, 2007

Since dragonflies have an exoskeleton they have to molt to grow. They can molt between 10 - 15 times, depending on the species. The last molt is the most critical, because it's defenseless against predators and bad weather. It has to crawl out of the water and find a safe place. This can be dangerous down here because of our nasty fire ants.

After it finds a safe place, its legs stiffen and lock, the larva's skin splits and the adult pushes out. Now, the dragonfly rests for several hours and usually takes wing the next day.

That's it in a nutshell...there will be a test tomorrow lol

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Dinu Mysore, India(Zone 10a) Mar 28, 2007

Thanks for the information flygirl. This morning I noticed another young one in another tank. Will try to picture it and post it here.

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