Did you know that dragonflies are terrific bugs to have a round for pest control? Yes, that's right, they eat many of the bugs that can be destructive or invasive to your body and home. They eat mosquitoes (thank You, Jesus!) as well as carpenter bees (who love to drill holes in your wooden decks and fences), ants (who like to come into your house looking for a nice place to live) and houseflies (who carry lots of yucky bacteria on the legs). Thank you, dragonflies!
There's a lot of interesting folklore behind how the dragonfly got its name. Some believe that it came from the story of St. George and the Dragon, and comes from the idea that St. George's horse turned into a dragonfly after the dragon cursed it. Other references to the dragonfly's name go back to the book Sylva Sylvarum, also known as A Naturall Historie in Ten Centuries by Francis Bacon, written in the 1600s.
Dragonflies are winged insects that belong to the order of Odonata. The Odonata order of insects include the many varieties of both dragonflies and damselflies and are carnivorous. The main difference between a dragonfly and a damselfly is that dragonflies keep their wings spread open, even while at rest. Dragonflies love hanging around water. The reason for this is that they are actually born in water! They spend most of their life in the water, and then one day, they crawl out of the water, begin to breathe air and transform into an adult dragonfly. How amazing is that?!
Millie's friend, Diego is a Wandering Glider dragonfly. Wandering Gliders are usually yellow or yellowish-orange and are one of the most widely traveled dragonflies. They are also called the Globe Wandering dragonfly because you can find one on every continent except for Antarctica. Incredible! The Wandering Glider can make a multi-generational journey of over 11,000 miles! Stay tuned for more learning resources connected with Millie and her friends! Sign up for the mailing list, and these will be sent to you as activities to do with your little ones for free!
Also, don't forget to sign up for the art activity and story time reading at ETB Music and Fine Arts Center! To register, email etbmusic@gmail.com.
