Britannica
Sources used in this answer
How do dragonflies help reduce mosquito populations?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Odonata
Male jewelwing damselfly (Calopteryx splendens).
Dragonflies help reduce mosquito populations by acting as voracious predators during both their aquatic larval stage and their winged adult stage.12
- Adult Stage: As agile and fast aerial predators, adult dragonflies actively hunt and consume flying insects, including mosquitoes. Their exceptional speed and bulging eyes, which provide a nearly 360-degree field of vision, make them highly effective at capturing small prey in flight.1
- Larval Stage: Young dragonflies, known as larvae or nymphs, are aquatic predators that live in freshwater habitats. They possess a specialized anatomical structure called a "mask"—a fusion of mouthparts equipped with fanglike pincers—which they use to seize and consume mosquito larvae.12
Because of their predatory efficiency, dragonfly larvae have been used successfully in some regions, such as Myanmar, to help interrupt the transmission of mosquito-borne diseases like dengue. While they are indiscriminate feeders, their role as natural controllers of pest populations is well-documented within the order Odonata.21