What Foods Do Dragonflies Eat (and Do They Bite)?

What Attracts Dragonflies to the Garden?

“I started seeing dragonflies in my garden last summer but hadn’t seen them before. What could be attracting them, and are they a problem?” asks Birds & Blooms reader Samuel Penny of Waldorf, Maryland.

Experts Kenn and Kimberly Kaufman say, “Dragonflies are welcome visitors in any garden. These fascinating creatures are totally harmless to humans, and they feed only on smaller insects, catching them in midair in fast, graceful flight. Although they may eat a few pollinators, they also eat many pests, and overall it is a benefit to have them around. If you started noticing them suddenly, they may have been attracted by a swarm of midges or other flying insects. Dragonflies lay their eggs in ponds and their larvae develop underwater, eating many larval mosquitoes as they grow.”

Backyard Tip: A water feature, especially a shallow pond, helps attract dragonflies and damselflies to your landscape, because it lures the types of insects they eat.

Don’t miss these dazzling dragonfly pictures.

Dragonflies Are Helpful Predators

Dragonflies eat a variety of backyard pests, such as mosquitoes, midges and flies. Damselflies choose from the same buggy menu as dragonflies, but they focus on tiniest insects. Damselflies and dragonflies both come from the same Odonata order (referred to collectively as odonates).

Do Dragonflies Bite Humans?

As Kenn and Kimberly note, dragonflies pose no threat to people. Though they might seem intimidating due to their size, they will not bite you or sting you and only eat small insects. If you dislike mosquitoes, you should welcome dragonflies!

To closely examine dragonflies, watch them through binoculars when they are perched on your garden plants. If you don’t have binoculars, you can still see these insects easily with your eyes. Find a spot where they’re active and simply wait as they cruise the vegetation for their next buggy meal.

Next, meet the skimmers: colorful dragonflies.