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Project Noah Nature School
This dragonfly naiad landed on a students' shorts. It doesn't look like an adult dragonfly, but it can use its wings to fly!
Wooded streams and rivers
Spotted on Jul 4, 2013
Submitted on Jul 5, 2013
1 Comment
Hi Musicalsky, this insect is actually a Robber Fly, Family Asilidae. I am not sure of the species but I can tell you that it is a female (you can tell because of the long, pointed abdomen). Robber Flies are a type of predatory fly that catches smaller flying insects for food. They are very effective hunters.
Here is a link to the Family page for Robber Flies on Bugguide.net:
http://bugguide.net/node/view/151