Big Red Skimmer

Libelulla saturata

Dragonflies take metamorphosis only half-seriously. Eggs hatch into nymphs, which grow into adults, skipping the mummy-like pupal stage that butterflies go through. Nevertheless, the nymph of the Big Red Skimmer looks and behaves very differently from its agile elder. The nymph is short, hairy, and dull-colored, and squats like a crab in the mud at the bottom of the marsh.

Fun Fact:
Like other dragonflies, the Big Red Skimmer undergoes incomplete metamorphosis.

What’s for Lunch:
Small insects

Where’s Home:
Freshwater marsh