Dragons & Damsels

Dragonflies are masters of the air. With the very latest high-speed camera technology we’ll witness their impressive manoeuvers. They can do everything that hummingbirds can – fly backwards, sideways or vertically upwards – but even better because they have twice as many wings!

Dragonflies use their aerial skills to catch insects in flight – even the nimblest of flies can’t escape. Just recently it was discovered how they do it. They predict their prey's movements using the same kinds of calculations that most advanced vertebrates use, but they do it with a brain infinitesimally smaller!

Scientists are now turning to these ancient creatures as model animals to study everything from mating strategies to territorial behaviour and flight dynamics. As we discover more and more about these fascinating insects the more fascinating they become.