Dragonflies And Dinosaurs

Some bugs are big—but they can’t beat the ancient dragonfly called Meganeura. Its wingspan was as wide as a seagull’s. Try squishing that with a fly swatter! Readers will love the astounding prehistoric world in the vivid pages of this informative book. Besides stunning facts about dragonflies, they’ll learn about dinosaurs and other creatures that roamed Earth at that time. Amid information that will ignite their imaginations, they'll also contemplate significant science subjects that aid in understanding the animals that walk Earth today.

At forty-two and given to the occasional panic attack, Randy Roman is taking a leave of absence from her life. After twenty years of working at a bank—no husband, no kids—she's hitting the road with her young nephews Mickey and Eric, and Dexter, a precocious dog they pick up along the way. With each passing mile of prairie, farmland and raspberry fi eld, Randy feels the thrill of freedom…. Their destination is Cranberry Portage, a quaint lakeside town her mother loved and Randy can barely remember. But a surprise awaits them at journey's end. Call it fate, karma, or the chance for renewal, it will give Randy the courage to take a risk that will change her life….

Some bugs are big—but they can’t beat the ancient dragonfly called Meganeura. Its wingspan was as wide as a seagull’s. Try squishing that with a fly swatter! Readers will love the astounding prehistoric world in the vivid pages of this informative book. Besides stunning facts about dragonflies, they’ll learn about dinosaurs and other creatures that roamed Earth at that time. Amid information that will ignite their imaginations, they'll also contemplate significant science subjects that aid in understanding the animals that walk Earth today.

Millions of years ago in the Cretaceous period, the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex--with its dagger-like teeth for tearing its prey to ribbons--was undoubtedly the fiercest carnivore to roam the Earth. Yet as What Bugged the Dinosaurs? reveals, T. rex was not the only killer. George and Roberta Poinar show how insects--from biting sand flies to disease-causing parasites--dominated life on the planet and played a significant role in the life and death of the dinosaurs. The Poinars bring the age of the dinosaurs marvelously to life. Analyzing exotic insects fossilized in Cretaceous amber at three major deposits in Lebanon, Burma, and Canada, they reconstruct the complex ecology of a hostile prehistoric world inhabited by voracious swarms of insects. The Poinars draw upon tantalizing new evidence from their amazing discoveries of disease-producing vertebrate pathogens in Cretaceous blood-sucking flies, as well as intestinal worms and protozoa found in fossilized dinosaur excrement, to provide a unique view of how insects infected with malaria, leishmania, and other pathogens, together with intestinal parasites, could have devastated dinosaur populations. A scientific adventure story from the authors whose research inspired Jurassic Park, What Bugged the Dinosaurs?? offers compelling evidence of how insects directly and indirectly contributed to the dinosaurs' demise.

This time, the X-Venture Xplorers’ are in the Permian - Carboniferous eras, around 350 million years back. Many creatures which are small today were very big back then- which presents a big problem when the X-Venture Xplorers come face to face with things like giant spiders! Even more big dangers from today’s small creatures await the team as they quickly realize that it is a bad idea to be PLAYING IN THE PERMIAN!

Dragonflies might be one of the most ancient of all insects-their ancestors were here before the dinosaurs. But what do we know about them? Why are they called dragonflies? What's up with those funny-looking eyes? What does it mean to be a bioindicator? The answers are inside, with photos of these beautiful insects and friendly cartoons.

Can Mazu the ankylosaurus find a way to protect a rare dragonfly? Find out in a fun story based on the Disney animated TV series Gigantosaurus. When Mazu discovers a rare dragonfly — the last of its kind — she is determined to find a safe place for the tiny creature to lay her eggs. But when the Raptors steal the dragonfly, Mazu needs to figure out a way to convince them to give it back. She offers to trade for something even more exotic: a scale from Gigantosaurus! But how will Mazu snatch one from the biggest, scariest dinosaur of all? She’ll have to use her smarts. And nobody is better at that than Mazu!

Here, for the first time, is a comprehensive and accessible overview of one of the world’s most popular insect groups, the Odonata. Written for interested amateurs as well as more experienced professionals, Dragonflies of the World covers their evolution, ecology, behaviour, physiology and taxonomy. It describes their unique attributes and the distinctive features of the suborders, superfamilies, families and subfamilies.

A lavishly illustrated introduction to the world's dragonflies and damselflies Dragonflies and damselflies are often called birdwatchers' insects. Large, brightly colored, active in the daytime, and displaying complex and interesting behaviors, they have existed since the days of the dinosaurs, and they continue to flourish. Their ancestors were the biggest insects ever, and they still impress us with their size, the largest bigger than a small hummingbird. There are more than 6,000 odonate species known at present, and you need only visit any wetland on a warm summer day to be enthralled by their stunning colors and fascinating behavior. In this lavishly illustrated natural history, leading dragonfly expert Dennis Paulson offers a comprehensive, accessible, and appealing introduction to the world's dragonflies and damselflies. The book highlights the impressive skills and abilities of dragonflies and damselflies--superb fliers that can glide, hover, cruise, and capture prey on the wing. It also describes their arsenal of tactics to avoid predators, and their amazing sex life, including dazzling courtship displays, aerial mating, sperm displacement, mate guarding, and male mimicry. Dragonflies and Damselflies includes profiles of more than fifty of the most interesting and beautiful species from around the world. Learn about the Great Cascade Damsel, which breeds only at waterfalls, the mesmerizing flight of Blue-winged Helicopters, and how the larva of the Common Sanddragon can burrow into sand as efficiently as a mole. Combining expert text and excellent color photographs, this is a must-have guide to these remarkable insects. A lavishly illustrated, comprehensive, and accessible natural history that reveals the beauty and diversity of one of the world's oldest and most popular insect groups Offers a complete guide to the evolution, life cycles, biology, anatomy, behavior, and habitats of dragonflies and damselflies Introduces the 39 families of dragonflies and damselflies through exemplary species accounts Features tips on field observation and lab research, and information on threats and conservation

Describes the habitat, life cycle, behavior, predators, and unique characteristics of dragonflies.