They appear to have a long stinger, but is it actually a stinger?
2007-06-24 12:23:26 · 13 answers · asked by Kelly H 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Zoology
They can bite, otherwise they couldn't eat. Dragonflies do not normally bite or sting humans (though they will bite in order to escape, for example, if grasped by the abdomen) and they are not poisonous. Dragonflies typically eat mosquitoes, midges and other small insects like flies, bees, and butterflies. Looks like naturelover read the same website that I did. :)
2007-06-24 13:41:03 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Will I don't know if they have stingers or not but i will tell you I am 60 years old and just a few years ago I had a dragonfly land on me and I felt like the most painful sting in my life. I would never have believed they do had I not had this experience. No I am not pscyhotic I know what I felt my advice is never let one land on you. Shelley Hooton Clearwater fl
2014-10-18 00:41:02 · answer #2 · answered by Shelley 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Do Dragonflies Sting
2016-10-08 05:01:59 · answer #3 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"Dragonflies do not normally bite or sting humans (though they will bite in order to escape, for example, if grasped by the abdomen); in fact, they are valued as a predator that helps control the populations of harmful insects, such as mosquitoes. It is because of this that dragonflies are sometimes called "mosquito hawks" in North America along with the Crane Fly."(Wikipedia on dragonflies)
They do have a small stinger (look at the diagram), but, like I quoted above, they don't usually bite or sting people. I always look forward to when we have dragonflies, because they keep all of the mosquitoes at bay.
2007-06-24 13:08:30 · answer #4 · answered by naturelover 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No that long thing is just their "anal appendage". They do have a little stinger under that. So I would assume they can but I don't know if they do, on us at least. They might if they were provoked. I have never been stung by one and there are lots near my grandmother's house.
Plus there are many varieties and body morphology probably varies some from species to species.
2007-06-24 12:27:50 · answer #5 · answered by Lady Geologist 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
No, dragon flies do not sting. What looks to be a long stinger is actually their egg-laying tube (ovipositor), they do not use it to sting.
2007-06-27 12:55:22 · answer #6 · answered by misscurious 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, they do not sting. What appears to be a stinger is just the lower part of their body. A dragonfly will be quite comfortable sitting on you finger.
2007-06-24 12:29:13 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
No, they have no stingers: the long appendage on the end of their abdomens are their claspers, used by the male to hold the female in their unique 'wheel' mating position.
This had a good article on them:
http://www.desertusa.com/mag98/nov/papr/drangonflies.html
2007-06-24 12:30:38 · answer #8 · answered by ajaggedskye 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
no but there are some great colours on some
2007-06-24 12:29:15 · answer #9 · answered by B Wild 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
she said anal appendage! ewwwwwwwwwww gross
2007-06-24 19:42:05 · answer #10 · answered by **twin** 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋