They’re acrobatic fliers with long bodies and veined wings and their babies breathe through their butts: dragonflies. Let’s get into the difference between a damselfly and dragonfly, how fast they dart around, how big they were in the age of the dinosaurs, sci-fi aviation inspiration, mating choreography, attracting them to your yard (maybe to eat them) and lots more with scholar, American Museum of Natural History curator, and dragonfly expert: Dr. Jessica Ware.

Visit Dr. Ware’s website and follow her on Google Scholar, Instagram and X

Buy Jessica’s children’s book, Bugs (A Day in the Life): What Do Bees, Ants, and Dragonflies Get up to All Day?, on Amazon or Bookshop.org

A donation went to the World Dragonfly Association

More episode sources and links

Smologies (short, classroom-safe) episodes

Other episodes you may enjoy: Entomology (INSECTS), Lepidopterology (BUTTERFLIES), Cicadology (CICADAS), Sparklebuttology (FIREFLIES), Dipterology (FLIES), Entomophagy Anthropology (EATING BUGS), Plumology (FEATHERS), Melaninology (SKIN/HAIR PIGMENT), Ophthalmology (EYES)

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Editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions and Jacob Chaffee

Managing Director: Susan Hale

Scheduling Producer: Noel Dilworth

Transcripts by Aveline Malek 

Website by Kelly R. Dwyer

Theme song by Nick Thorburn