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Ponds & Aquatic Plants

how to get rid of! dragon fly larvae

14 years ago

So I have an abnormally large number of dragonfly larvae in my 200 gallon fancy guppy pond. My guppies have been very prolific and this last week i estimated that I had about 50 or so. However, yesterday I got home from being in Boston for 4 days, and I noticed i had significantly fewer guppies, and right off the bat I saw 4 big one - one and a half inch dragon fly larvae sitting out in the open. This leads me to believe that they are eating my guppies!

Everyone says dragon flies are good for eating mosquitoes, but we don't really have many mosquitoes where I live, and i would rather have my pretty guppies than big biting dragon flies.

And i know that the guppies didn't die from the cold (it doesn't get very cold to begin with here) because the pond is heated and never gets bellow 65 degrees, and usually its in the lower to mid 70s.

Thank you for any suggestions you might have!

and here is a pic of my pond

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Comments (6)

sdavis
14 years ago
Left to their own devices you will end up with just a few very plump dragonfly larvae. They are ambush predators hanging out in shallow waters often among the aquatic plant foliage

If you can see the dragonfly larvae easily, snip the dragonflies in half with a pair of scissors, the fish get their turn, to snack on the dragonfly
larryl
14 years ago
You have created the perfect food source for dragonfly larvae. If you do choose to engage the battle, be prepared for a war that you can never actually win, and you know how frustrating that can be. There will always be more larvae. Perhaps an outdoor pond isn't the best place for guppy breeding.
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Thanks all for your compliments. I meant to go back out every few minutes to get some good pics of the dragonfly nymph, but you know how it is when you get old(er). You go in the house with good intentions to come back out but you see a lamp that needs to be dusted. While you're dusting the lamp you see the bottle of Resolve you left on the end table. You put the Resolve back under the sink and take the cleanser to clean the sink. When you put the cleanser back you find the plant food you've been looking for for weeks. You mix it up and water the plants and find the scissors you have been looking for in the sunroom. You put the scissors back in the drawer where you keep the extra batteries for the camera............the camera, the dragon fly nymph, you fly out the door. There is no nymph, no dragon fly, no exoskeleton. Darn, I missed it, oh well maybe next year. I could have just sat out on the swing and waited, but it was 90Âº+ outside. Here's one more pic I shot last night. Jenny
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goodkarma_
14 years ago
You could scoop them up with a net. Place in big enough water container with plants, feed them some fish food and wait for them to become dragonflys. It might work yes?

Lisa
johnkr
14 years ago
Dragonfly Larvae will eat smaller fish. Goldfish and Koi are susceptible when young, but get their revenge as adults. I've seen goldfish devour larvae during my spring cleanings. I think Larry is correct about your guppies. Kind of a no win scenario. Add some goldfish and you would no longer see much larvae, but the goldfish would eat the guppies.

Dragonflies do eat mosquitoes. They also eat pollinating insects such as bees. Nature requires a balance.

The YouTube video below demonstrates what what can happen to small fish.

Here is a link that might be useful: Larvae Attack
garyfla_gw
14 years ago
Hi
I wouldn't worry too much about the guppies lol. If you keep the water that warm you'll have more offspring than the pond can handle anyway.
I"ve kept platies and swordtails since 82 and except for a freak freeze have never had the population decline.
Last August i cleaned out my small inground because it developed a leak and quit counting when I got to 400 fish lol. This is in spite of herons dragonflies cats raccoons kids you name it lol. gary
jlaristy_hotmail_com
12 years ago
Nymphs are visual hunters and your pond seems to have great clarity. Do some hunting of your own by setting bait: A glass jar filled with pond water and a portion of (choose-guppies, brine shrimp...) and place it in some visually and net-accessible, open space at the bottom of your pond. Use cheesecloth or fine mesh screen and a rubber band to keep your bait in the jar.
Get a six pack, a chair, a net and watch for curious (or rather, always hungry) nymphs gravitate to this banquet.

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