I get a lot of questions about insects when people learn that I’m an entomologist. These frequently sound something like, “I saw this little brown beetle in my house the other day – what is it?” Most of the time, I have a hard time identifying an insect based on a description like this. You often need to see an insect to properly identify it. At the very least you need a photo. There are, after all, close to a million known species of insects and there may be over 10,000,000 insect species in all! One person can’t possibly know all of the species of insects, no matter how great their memory is. However, there are some things that I can identify based entirely on a quick and dirty description. One of the easiest is the difference between a damselfly and an antlion. They look very similar so I completely understand why people have a hard time telling them apart, but there are some obvious distinctions if you know what to look for.
This is a member of the family Coenagrionidae, so it is one of the very common little blue damselflies you’ll see around ponds. What do you notice about the structure of this insect? Look closely at the wings. Click on the to enlarge it if you need to. How many wing veins and cells in the wings do you see? The wing veins are the lines on the wings while the cells are the little open square parts between the wing veins. The color on damselflies is often distinctive. They fade badly once they are dead, but this damselfly used to be a brilliant blue. Now look at the head. Do you see any antennae? Probably not. They’re visible (there’s one sticking off the right side of the head right above the right eye, looks like a little hair or a piece of dust), but they’re small, bristly things that most people wouldn’t even notice. They’re definitely shorter than the length of the head.
Can you see why people get these two insects mixed up? Even some beginning entomologists have a hard time telling the two of these apart! Look closely at this insect like you did with the damselfly. First, you should note the color. This insect is brown, as are almost all antlions. While some damseflies are brown (especially females), there are many that are brightly colored. If you have a brightly colored individual with this shape, it’s a damselfly, not an antlion. Next, look at the wings and observe how many cells there are. How many do you see? Antlions belong to the order Neuroptera, the net-winged insects. Antlions, like other neuropterans, have tiny cells in their wings and a whole lot of them, many more than you’d ever see in a damselfly. If you see an insect with this shape with tons of little cells instead of 100 or so large, open cells, you’re looking at an antlion. But the easiest way to tell them apart is by looking at the head. What do the antennae look like on this insect? They’re very long, much longer than then length of the head, and thick. In other words, they’re quite conspicuous, very unlike the tiny, bristly antennae you can barely see in the damselflies. If you see an insect with this shape that has long, luxurious antennae, it’s antlion. If it has antennae that are barely visible, it’s a damselfly. Easy, right?
Of course, there’s one other obvious distinction. Damseflies are diurnal, which means that they are active during the day. Antlions are nocturnal, so they are active at night. You might occasionally find an antlion out during the day, but it’s very unlikely to see a damselfly at night. Most of the time it’s easy to tell these two insects apart based solely on when you see them! But, it’s always good to check the length of the antennae and the number of wing veins to be sure.
Now that you know the difference between an antlion and a damselfly, you might start noticing how often these two insects are mixed up. There is a tank top that I would dearly love to have that depicts an antlion. The people selling it have it labeled as a dragonfly (not even a damselfly!). Rubber stamps, especially ones based on old engravings from the 1800’s or early 1900’s, often erroneously depict antlions when they’re supposed to be damselflies. And all sorts of people feel the need to put antennae on dragonfly and damselfly s. I don’t know why this is so common, but you will see dragonflies and damselflies with long curly antennae everywhere you look. This is actually my single biggest pet peeve as an entomologist. I couldn’t care less about using the word bug when you should use insect, but stick antennae on my favorite insects and you and I are going to have words!
Next time I’ll likely post about how to tell damselfly nymphs apart from stone fly and mayfly nymphs. They’re easy too, so I hope you’ll check in again soon!
Dragonflies are a familiar sight around ponds, streams, and other wetlands. With their long bodies, large transparent wings, and aerial acrobatics, they have a distinctive appearance. However, there are several other insects that are sometimes confused with dragonflies due to similar traits. Here are 5 bugs that are often mistaken for dragonflies.
1. Damselflies
Damselflies bear a close resemblance to dragonflies and are in the same order Odonata. They have slender bodies, transparent wings, and live near water.
However, damselflies tend to be smaller, with more delicate bodies and wings. Dragonflies have wings that extend out flat when at rest while damselflies hold their wings together over their bodies. Dragonfly eyes take up much of the head while damselflies have eyes spaced widely apart. There are over 5,000 species of damselflies compared to about 7,000 dragonfly species.
2. Mayflies
Mayflies are an ancient order of insects that have been around for over 300 million years. They are found around lakes and rivers just like dragonflies.
Adult mayflies have transparent wings and elongated bodies that superficially look similar to dragonflies However, mayflies have much shorter lifespans as adults While dragonflies can live for months, mayflies usually live just 1-3 days as adults before dying. They do not even have functioning mouth parts and do not eat.
Mayfly nymphs that live underwater can be distinguished from dragonfly larvae by their lack of large protruding eyes and the presence of delicate gills along the abdomen.
3. Antlion Adults
Antlion larvae are famous for digging conical pits in sand to trap ants and other insects. However, the adult antlion looks nothing like the larvae. The adult antlion’s slender body and four transparent wings give it an appearance similar to some dragonflies.
Adult antlions though have prominent bulbous eyes unlike the sleekened eyes of dragonflies. Their wings also have extensive dark markings and patterns that differ from the wings of most dragonflies. Antlion adults are weak fliers and are mostly active at dawn and dusk, unlike dragonflies that fly during the day
4. Robber Flies
There are over 1,000 species of robber flies, insect predators that are in the fly order Diptera but resemble dragonflies in some ways. They have long, narrow abdomens and may wave their legs in flight like dragonflies.
However, robber flies only have two wings instead of the four wings characteristic of dragonflies. Robber flies also have a distinctively tapered and pointed abdomen tip unlike dragonflies’ blunt ended abdomen. The short antennae with a bristle-like arista also helps distinguish them from the barely visible antennae of dragonflies.
5. Giant Water Bugs
Giant water bugs belong to the family Belostomatidae, a group of large predatory true bugs living in freshwater habitats. They have front legs adapted for grasping prey much like dragonflies. Their size and elongated dark bodies can cause them to be mistaken for dragonflies.
The key difference is that water bugs have hardened forewings (called hemelytra) rather than the completely transparent wings of dragonflies. Water bugs also have piercing, sucking mouthparts instead of the chewing mouthparts of dragonflies. Water bug nymphs have a visible siphon at the end of the abdomen unlike dragonfly larvae.
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Aquatic entomologist with a blogging habit
I get a lot of questions about insects when people learn that I’m an entomologist. These frequently sound something like, “I saw this little brown beetle in my house the other day – what is it?” Most of the time, I have a hard time identifying an insect based on a description like this. You often need to see an insect to properly identify it. At the very least you need a photo. There are, after all, close to a million known species of insects and there may be over 10,000,000 insect species in all! One person can’t possibly know all of the species of insects, no matter how great their memory is. However, there are some things that I can identify based entirely on a quick and dirty description. One of the easiest is the difference between a damselfly and an antlion. They look very similar so I completely understand why people have a hard time telling them apart, but there are some obvious distinctions if you know what to look for.
First, let’s take a look at a damselfly:
This is a member of the family Coenagrionidae, so it is one of the very common little blue damselflies you’ll see around ponds. What do you notice about the structure of this insect? Look closely at the wings. Click on the to enlarge it if you need to. How many wing veins and cells in the wings do you see? The wing veins are the lines on the wings while the cells are the little open square parts between the wing veins. The color on damselflies is often distinctive. They fade badly once they are dead, but this damselfly used to be a brilliant blue. Now look at the head. Do you see any antennae? Probably not. They’re visible (there’s one sticking off the right side of the head right above the right eye, looks like a little hair or a piece of dust), but they’re small, bristly things that most people wouldn’t even notice. They’re definitely shorter than the length of the head.
Now look at the antlion:
Can you see why people get these two insects mixed up? Even some beginning entomologists have a hard time telling the two of these apart! Look closely at this insect like you did with the damselfly. First, you should note the color. This insect is brown, as are almost all antlions. While some damseflies are brown (especially females), there are many that are brightly colored. If you have a brightly colored individual with this shape, it’s a damselfly, not an antlion. Next, look at the wings and observe how many cells there are. How many do you see? Antlions belong to the order Neuroptera, the net-winged insects. Antlions, like other neuropterans, have tiny cells in their wings and a whole lot of them, many more than you’d ever see in a damselfly. If you see an insect with this shape with tons of little cells instead of 100 or so large, open cells, you’re looking at an antlion. But the easiest way to tell them apart is by looking at the head. What do the antennae look like on this insect? They’re very long, much longer than then length of the head, and thick. In other words, they’re quite conspicuous, very unlike the tiny, bristly antennae you can barely see in the damselflies. If you see an insect with this shape that has long, luxurious antennae, it’s antlion. If it has antennae that are barely visible, it’s a damselfly. Easy, right?
Of course, there’s one other obvious distinction. Damseflies are diurnal, which means that they are active during the day. Antlions are nocturnal, so they are active at night. You might occasionally find an antlion out during the day, but it’s very unlikely to see a damselfly at night. Most of the time it’s easy to tell these two insects apart based solely on when you see them! But, it’s always good to check the length of the antennae and the number of wing veins to be sure.
Now that you know the difference between an antlion and a damselfly, you might start noticing how often these two insects are mixed up. There is a tank top that I would dearly love to have that depicts an antlion. The people selling it have it labeled as a dragonfly (not even a damselfly!). Rubber stamps, especially ones based on old engravings from the 1800’s or early 1900’s, often erroneously depict antlions when they’re supposed to be damselflies. And all sorts of people feel the need to put antennae on dragonfly and damselfly s. I don’t know why this is so common, but you will see dragonflies and damselflies with long curly antennae everywhere you look. This is actually my single biggest pet peeve as an entomologist. I couldn’t care less about using the word bug when you should use insect, but stick antennae on my favorite insects and you and I are going to have words!
Next time I’ll likely post about how to tell damselfly nymphs apart from stone fly and mayfly nymphs. They’re easy too, so I hope you’ll check in again soon!
Text copyright © 2010 DragonflyWoman.wordpress.com
The Insane Biology of: The Dragonfly
FAQ
What bug is mistaken for dragonfly?
Or maybe it was a damselfly. How can you tell the difference? Dragonflies and damselflies are similar, both belonging to the Odonata subspecies of insects. More than 5,000 species of these insects exist, with dragonflies being more common than damselflies, according to Insect Identification.
Are damselfly harmful or helpful?
Dragonflies and damselflies do no harm to people, pets, crops, landscape plants or houses. They are entirely beneficial, first as a vital part of the aquatic food chain, and second as predators of mosquitoes and other pests.
What are the bugs that look like dragons?
Phrictus quinquepartitus, also known as the wart-headed bug and the dragon-headed bug, is an insect belonging to the family Fulgoridae. They were described by English entomologist William Lucas Distant in 1883. They are found in Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, and parts of Brazil.
Do damselflies bite or sting?
They do not bite or sting humans. It is a relatively short life for adult damselflies. Some live a few weeks, while others live for a few months. But damselflies are among the oldest living creatures on the planet.
What Bugs resemble dragonflies?
Damselflies and owlflies are among the bugs that resemble dragonflies the most. Different feeding times and long antennae typically help distinguish these dragonflies from these species. Mating habits and the capacity dragonflies have to lay eggs in still water is what can further separate them from similar species.
What is a dragonfly?
The mighty dragonfly is an insect with an ancient history. There are many types of dragonflies, which can lead to confusion with other insects. We delve into interesting information about the dragonfly.
Why are dragonflies different types of insects?
Various colors and long transparent wings make dragonflies a distinct type of insect. A few other species might wrongly be taken as dragonflies either due to an elongated body or due to having similar transparent wings. Some species might be confused with dragonflies due to shared near-water habits. What Does A Dragonfly Look Like?
What do dragonflies look like?
Dragonflies have a long tubular body, 3 pairs of legs, forewings, and hindwings. Oversized wings are specific to the species. These wings can have various levels of transparency. Dragonflies can be red, yellow, blue, brown, green, or black. Dragonflies always live next to the water.
Are damselflies a dragonfly?
Damselflies are flying insects of the suborder Zygoptera in the order Odonata. They are similar to dragonflies (which constitute the other odonatan suborder, Epiprocta) but are usually smaller and have slimmer bodies. Most species fold the wings along the body when at rest, unlike dragonflies which hold the wings flat and away from the body.
What does a damselfly dragonfly look like?
Damselfly Damselflies look like a petite version of the well-known dragonfly. In fact, they come from the same scientific order, meaning they shared a common ancestor. They are both related to what’s thought to be the largest insect ever to roam – or fly over – the earth, which had a wingspan of more than half a metre.