Some among us must have been mighty cruel as kids, pinching the wings of butterflies or targeting squirrels with pellets shot from catapults and the commonest one, tying a thread to the abdomen of a dragonfly and flying it like a kite. As we grow up, empathy kicks in. But kids will be kids. The sooner we teach kids about nature the less chances of they harming it.

I explain to the know-it-all young generation that dragonflies curb the spread of dengue, malaria or other mosquito or fly-borne diseases. Dragonflies are aggressive hunters in both their adult and larval form. Dragonfly larvae, also called naiads or nymphs, have very powerful jaws and due to their aquatic existence, they are feared predators of freshwater invertebrates, tadpoles as well as fish.