Darners+(not+the+kind+that+fix+your+socks)

=__Aeshnidae__=

About:
Within the order Odonata lies the family Aeshnidae, also called the darners or the hawkers. Aeshnidae is a group of large and fast flying dragonflies which can be found almost everywhere in the world with Antarctica being the only notable exception. The name "darner" comes from the resemblance between the female's abdomen and a knitting needle.

Flying Abilities:
With four large and powerful wings, these animals are incredible flyers. They can fly forwards, backwards, or even hover, and they can stay airborne for long periods without experiencing exhaustion. Their large compound eyes take up much of their head and give them sight that hawks would be jealous of. This combined with their flying prowess and powerful mouths makes them a nearly inescapable predator which smaller insects should watch out for.

Mating and nymphs:
An impressive talent that these dragonflies possess is their ability to mate while flying. After they are fertilized, the eggs are deposited into a body of water because the nymphs are aquatic. The young are also carnivorous, feeding on insects and small fish.



A Dragonfly's awesome hunting technique can be seen in slow motion HERE

Sources:

1. Manuela Rebora, Silvana Piersanti, Elda Gaino, The mechanoreceptors on the endophytic ovipositor of the dragonfly Aeshna cyanea (Odonata, Aeshnidae), Arthropod Structure & Development, Volume 42, Issue 5, September 2013, Pages 369-378, ISSN 1467-8039, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.asd.2013.06.004.

2. BLANKE, A., GREVE, C., MOKSO, R., BECKMANN, F. and MISOF, B. (2013), An updated phylogeny of Anisoptera including formal convergence analysis of morphological characters. Systematic Entomology, 38: 474–490. doi: 10.1111/syen.12012

Photos courtesy of Bugguide.net and NationalGeographic.com, respectively. Photo 1 Photo 2

Bug guide was also a helpful source