Damselfly behavioral responses to changes in weather

Odonates exhibit a variety of storm associated behaviors, including abandoning ponds just before storms begin.  It is probable that odonates are able to detect changes in weather that alert them to approaching storms and allow them to escape the water’s edge before it begins to rain.  Damselflies in the genus Enallagma were observed at a Colorado marsh to determine which weather factors contributed to the storm-induced behaviors exhibited by the damselflies.  Damselflies were observed for one-hour periods and their flight activity quantified.  Weather parameters were also measured every five minutes to determine how they changed during the observational periods.  Using multiple regression analysis, it is clear that light intensity is the strongest weather parameter affecting damselfly behaviors, but temperature, wind speed, and the presence of rain were also significant.  The damselflies also exhibited pond abandonment behavior during storms.  It is likely that storms are dangerous to damselflies and their ability to detect their arrival is an important survival mechanism.  However, it is also possible that pond abandonment behavior is triggered by the same factors necessary to trigger roosting behaviors and the damselflies simply return to their roosting sites during storms.