Citizen Scientists bring up to speed I Marlo Perdicas, Park Biologist
f you visit any Summit Metro Parks location in the warm months, you’ll likely encounter a dragonfly.
through iNaturalist, a global, web-based
An insect with six legs, fairy-like wings
images of dragonflies throughout the
and compound eyes, dragonflies will
state have contributed more than
dazzle you with their acrobatic flight
49,000 records to the project in 208
and colorfully patterned bodies.
and 209. The Ohio Dragonfly Survey
platform for collecting biodiversity data using photographs. Volunteers collecting
aims to combine new observations with Dragonflies rely on streams or ponds
historical dragonfly records so state
for their life cycle and are important
wildlife officials can conduct species
indicators of healthy water systems.
assessments.
They are ferocious predators of smaller insects, and whose ecosystem services
In Summit County alone, 90 species
we take for granted. For these reasons,
were recorded, including four state-
it is important to understand what types
endangered species and one state-
of dragonflies we have in our area and
threatened species. Summit Metro
where they are found.
Parks volunteers were among those contributing a significant number of
The Ohio Division of Natural Resources
observations to this project. Based on
and Ohio State University initiated a
survey results, some dragonflies may
state-wide dragonfly survey in 208
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