Dragonflies on Logan Martin Lake

Dragonflies on Logan Martin Lake

While living on Logan Martin Lake, you will find an abundance of wildlife and insects. The one I enjoy seeing the most is the dragonfly.

Because of a set a circumstances in my past, seeing a dragonfly holds special meaning to me.  I have seen some pretty photographs of dragonflies taken around Logan Martin Lake this year. Tonight I decided to look up their life cycle and what I found was fascinating.

The dragonfly's cycle of life comes in three stages, the egg, the nymph and adult.

The dragonfly mates while flying.  The female will lay her eggs in the calm marshy areas of water on a plant; if she cannot locate one, she will drop them in the water.

When the dragonfly eggs hatch, they are then called nymph. They do not have wings at this stage. Nymphs live in the water while they are developing into dragonflies. This developing stage of the dragonfly's life can take up to four years to complete. If the nymph completes it cycle in the winter, it will not leave the water until the weather warms.

When the nymph has completed this cycle, and the weather has warmed, this is when the metamorphosis takes place. The dragonfly will crawl out of water, on a stem of a plant, and sheds its skin. The skin is called exuvia. After the nymph sheds its skin, a full grown adult dragonfly will emerge.

Immediately the adult dragonfly starts their search for a mate.  After the female finds her mate, she starts searching the area for water so she can lay her eggs. Once she has laid her eggs, the cycle of life begins again. The life span of an adult dragonfly is only about two months.

While out enjoying fishing or walking the shores of Logan Martin Lake, you will now understand why you are seeing so many dragonflies.

This photograph was taken by Diane Williams, a real estate agent with REMAX Realty Pros in Pell City, Alabama.  All rights reserved and may not be reproduced without written permission. If you would like to request permission, please contact me at Diane@LoganMartinLakeSales.com.