Hi all,

Long time lurker, small time poster :-) I have a *very* small bird
splashing pool that, due to my Cyprio Cypri-Vac lacking a seal (which I now
located in the UK from the company directly) is a tad bit more dirty this
year than normally. Normally I suck the thing clean once a week and refill.
It's not a haven for fish, etc., but gets the occasional frog. I has a
great amount of pollen in it (it's so bad this year!) but not so much algae.

I was adding water to it yesterday and noticed some things swimming around
and, much to my delight, I've ID'd them as dragonfly nymphs (naiads? maybe)
and what I need to know is how long they normally take to develop. I'm
concerned that there may not be enough food for them to grow up and out of
the small pool. Anything I can put in there? There are small water bugs on
top and I noticed some really gross squirmy things which may have been mosq.
larvae (I know DF's love mosquitos!). I would love to help these little
guys grow up into big mosquito eaters!

There is a small tetra fountain that keeps the water flowing a bit but
evidently it's not strong enough to suck in the DF's.

Just looking for professional opinions on these little guys. I love
dragonflies!

LeeAnne

--
------
If you're an insomniac, agnostic, dyslexic do you lay
awake at night wondering if there is a dog?
-----

They will change before too long, fly around,
breed and then die before fall. They have just the summer to do all that.

What they need is something to crawl out on.
Usually a reed plant. They hang out, split the skin on their 'neck' area, and
crawl out a dragonfly.
They will need to hang out a bit to let their wings dry.
Do you have anything that they can use to complete their life cycle in the
little pondlet? You can use
anything artificial, a wooden spoon, a wooden bbq skewer... thinking of what I
have around the house.

Let us know what happens!



k30a

Thank you K30a - there are some small stones that stick out of the water as
well as a small piece of sinking aquarium driftwood that comes up and out as
well.

I'll make sure they have plenty of options - I'm thinking I'll cut some of
my Iris leaves and give them an avenue right into the flower bed so they're
not too exposed.

I'm going to check them a couple times a day - I wish I had teeny-tiny
little fish to feed 'em :-)

LeeAnne

"K30a" wrote in message
...

They will change before too long, fly around,
breed and then die before fall. They have just the summer to do all that.

What they need is something to crawl out on.
Usually a reed plant. They hang out, split the skin on their 'neck' area,
and
crawl out a dragonfly.
They will need to hang out a bit to let their wings dry.
Do you have anything that they can use to complete their life cycle in the
little pondlet? You can use
anything artificial, a wooden spoon, a wooden bbq skewer... thinking of
what I
have around the house.

Let us know what happens!



k30a

On Mon, 16 Jun 2003 16:16:14 -0400, "LeeAnne"
wrote:

Thank you K30a - there are some small stones that stick out of the water as
well as a small piece of sinking aquarium driftwood that comes up and out as
well.

I'll make sure they have plenty of options - I'm thinking I'll cut some of
my Iris leaves and give them an avenue right into the flower bed so they're
not too exposed.

I'm going to check them a couple times a day - I wish I had teeny-tiny
little fish to feed 'em :-)

Mosquito larvae and nearly any small aquatic bug is good food for dragon fly
nymphs. THey eat only live, moving prey.

Did you ever see how they eat? Their front legs have evolved as a "grabber"
that darts out at lightning speed and snares prey. It brings it directly to
the mouth. I could use one of those to eat popcorn. :-)

Bob