The Banded Demoiselles of Utrecht city


Reproduction The males of the Banded Demoiselle keep a territory that they defend against other males. In the territory there are some spots fit for laying eggs. When a female comes around, they try to draw her attention. They do that by flapping their blue wings in a special way at one of spots fit for laying eggs. If the females wants, first the copulation takes place. The males grabs the female in het neck. The female bends her abdomen to get his sperm.	Copulating Banded Demoiselles
Female Banded Demoiselle laying eggs on a water plant		Laying eggs Right after the copulation, the female lays eggs. She lays the eggs usually on plants growing in the water. She isn't afraid to get wet in doing so. Sometimes she disappears totally under water. She can stay tens of minutes under water.
Under water On this photo the female has gone totally under water to lay her eggs. To enable staying long under water, the Banded Demoiselle has special hook-formed hairs on the body and wings. These make sure that an air bubble surround her. Insects (and thus also dragonflies) have no lungs as humans do. In stead they have tubes in their skin which branches through the whole body. They breath through these.	Totally under water