Dragonhunter

 The dragonhunter is the largest dragonfly that we have here in the upper Midwest. It has an average length of about 3.3 inches, well short of the giant darner, which at 5 inches is the longest dragonfly in the US. The dragonhunter is beefier though. It's abdomen is so large that the tip often curls down in a J shape when they fly. They are typically found around moderate to swift flowing streams and rivers where they can live up to seven years in their larval form, called a nymph. They are fierce predators eating other large dragonflies, as well as butterflies including the toxic monarch butterfly.