Damselfly
Damselfly photo by Benimoto, available under a Creative Commons Attribution license
While I learn about local wildlife from a variety of sources, I especially enjoy lessons from my fellow nature lovers. On one of the family walks offered by the Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy (highly recommended!), leader Andy Rabin, an Odonata enthusiast, asked participants if we knew the difference between a dragonfly and a damselfly. Truth be told, I didn’t at the time. But I soon learned with the help of a fairy-tale comparison.
Dragonfly
Dragonfly photo by Benimoto, available under a Creative Commons Attribution license
Fictional dragons are large compared to their fair maiden, or damsel, counterparts—and the same goes for these close cousins of the insect world. Damselflies usually have thin bodies, while dragonflies tend to be stouter. When perching, damselflies hold their wings together or partially spread, while dragonflies typically rest with their wings open. Among the other differences: Dragonfly eyes meet at or near the top of the head, while damselfly eyes are set apart.
Both types of odonates visit my wildlife garden (no doubt having a variety of perching spots and a stream nearby helps). Do they visit yours too? I hope so. They’re beautiful to behold.
Kelly lives in northern Virginia and writes about wildlife gardening and other topics for National Wildlife magazine.
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Thank you for posting this! I shared the information with my 4 year-old nature explorer, and we are going to go out to our nearest pond to see if we can spot damsleflies and dragonflies, and see if we can tell them apart.
I truly love this blog!
Angela
Your comment made my day, Angela. :0) One of the true joys in my life is sharing nature experiences with my kids. Hope you and your 4-year-old explorer pal had a great adventure today. Cheers to outdoor play!
The big explorer & I discovered the differences between these two this summer at my step-mom’s backyard pond. It’s been fun to start becoming more aware of insect names and unique features.
Hello, Debi! My explorers and I are learning new things about insects all the time. What’s great is that there is SO MUCH more to discover. Doing my best to ID specific species of dragonfly and damselfly that visit the backyard now and how to distinguish males from females.… Amazing. Had long marveled at naturalist friends’ abilities to recall so many details about plants and animals. But as I get to know species, I find it’s not as difficult as I once imagined to retain info about them. They’re friends of a wild sort. :0) Happy day!
*Squeeel*! I love this! I just talked about dragonflies and damselflies on my website Kids Safe Landscape.com. I’m leading the Wildlife Project for our 4H club this year and I have to incorporate this into one of my meetings.
Thanks, Kelly!
You’re welcome, Chris. Thank YOU for your note. I’m happy to learn more about your work with (and for!) kids. Wildlife/gardening love is definitely something to share….
Thanks, I think I can remember these differences. I like know the insects in my garden. I’ve always wondered about the color differences with these insects, is it just a trait, like eye color, or is there some species difference.
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Hello, Curtis. Seems you’re familiar with a good many pollinators visiting your garden, based on your post. Beyond the basic differences between dragonflies and damselflies, there’s much to learn about each species’s markings, habits (e.g., how they perch), and the distinctions between male and female (e.g., coloration). Yup. The fairy tale is just the beginning!
I learned the difference between damselflies and dragonflies last year. Lots of damselflies have made their home in my garden, while dragonflies are frequent visitors. They are all quite beautiful, but the damselflies are like tiny gems.
Love the “tiny gems” analogy, Barbara. They are indeed …
Some beautiful pics of dragon and damselflies, Kelly! Thanks for sharing. We love watching the dragonflies cruising the airspace in our gardens eating mosquitoes and other pests. They are natural bug vacuums
Howdy, Ellen. Credit for the photos goes to “Benimoto” on Flickr; I like them too, particularly the damselfly shot. Our yard backs to a woodland and on its edge is taller vegetation (mix of grasses and wildflowers). I like to visit this section of the yard, looking for different insects. On first glance it may seem like “just grass” … but when you look closely, you see the damselflies and other wee wonders. So nice.
Thank you for the beautiful photos and clear explanation! I live in the city so I don’t get to see many of these except when I go to visit my sister, but I love insects and they are the subjects of many of my sculptures and mosaics. In French, damselfly is ‘demoiselle’, sounds so dainty, and I suppose is where the English word comes from.
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Oh awesome! Love knowing this information ~ will be a much more informed observer now ~ love it, love it, love it ~ thanks!