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Image: LiveScience |
These tiny creatures have been migrating since ancient times, yet scientists still know very little about their origins and destinations.
“We are as clueless as Aristotle was 2000 years ago“, biologist Martin Wikelski remarked, referencing the famous ancient Greek philosopher’s erroneous claim that birds hibernate in swamps during winter.
Now, Wikelski understands Aristotle better, at least in one aspect.
In a recent study, as the lead scientist at Princeton, he and his colleagues discovered that dragonflies and songbirds share the same long-distance flying habits. This evidence suggests that migratory behavior may not be as complex as previously thought and could have originated over 100 million years earlier than earlier estimates.
The research team attached radio transmitters to the wings of 14 green darner dragonflies and tracked the radio signals from an aircraft and handheld devices on the ground.
“They migrate just like birds – in other words, birds actually migrate in the way insects do“, Wikelski stated.
Although dragonflies appeared on Earth 140 million years before birds (according to fossil data), they also endure similar wind and temperature conditions. Both species postpone migration during strong winds and only depart after a two-day cold snap. They even utilize the same landmarks on the ground and rest at the same beaches.
“We also observed other similarities, prompting us to wonder how these migratory patterns developed in animals throughout Earth’s history“, Wikelski added.
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