The story of the ocean-crossing dragonfly peaked my interest today. And while you may suspect it is because of the amazing story of the dragonfly, properly named the Globe Skimmer (Pantala flavescens), it’s not. More on that in a moment.
Globe Skimmer Dragonfly
If you haven’t heard about the ocean-crossing dragonfly before, here is some info. The Globe Skimmer was discovered in the Maldives by the marine biologist Charles Anderson. He observed that there was a explosion in the dragonfly population during certain times of the year. Perking his interest, he set out to track down the reason for the sudden increase in dragonflies. What he found whas that this small unsuspecting dragonfly has the longest migratory path of any insect in the world.
Find out more in this video:
And why did this story peak my interest? For those that are still interested, this was the second time I saw the Maldives today. The other time was in a interesting documentary that talked about how delicately balanced their entire existence is. You see, the Maldives are a cluster of 1,192 islands located in the Indian Ocean. Only 200 of them are inhabited, and most have fewer than 500 people living on them. The islands were build up on coral reefs, which have palm tree growing on them. Most of the islands are less than four feet above sea level and are protected by out lying reefs, which act as natural breakers.
Filitheyo Island in the Maldives
Coral is very sensitive to changes in water temperature, which has been going up due to global warming. Even a slight rise in sea level can threaten their ecosystem and the Maldivians’ existence, causing the population to relocate.
The Maldives was just one of the examples of how even minimal rise in sea level will and is effecting an ever growing population.
