Ep. 585 - Dragonflies Need Plants
In Defense of Plants Podcast
In Defense of Plants
4.8 • 1.3K Ratings
🗓️ 5 July 2026
⏱️ 44 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Dragonflies and damselflies are voracious aerial predators that help keep populations of other insects like mosquitoes in check. These amazing insects also require aquatic habitats to complete their life cycles. Simply put, without wetlands we don't have dragonflies and damselflies. However, not all wetlands will do. My guest Dr. Mary Ann Perron is here to discuss why native aquatic plants are absolutely essential to the success of these insects. Join us as we discuss what makes a good wetland for dragonflies and damselflies and learn what you can do to help them out in your own community! This episode was produced in part by Chris, Gerald, Elise, Maggie, Mamie, A.J., Dallas, Channele, KC, Joe, Diane, Kim, Tanya, Neil, Matthew, April, Dana, Lilith, Sanza, Eva, Yellowroot, Wisewren, Nadia, Heidi, Blake, Josh, Laure, R.J., Carly, Lucia, Dana, Sarah, Lauren, Strych Mind, Linda, Sylvan, Austin, Sarah, Ethan, Elle, Steve, Cassie, Chuck, Aaron, Gillian, Abi, Rich, Shad, Maddie, Owen, Linda, Alana, Sigma, Max, Richard, Maia, Rens, David, Robert, Thomas, Valerie, Joan, Mohsin Kazmi Photography, Cathy, Simon, Nick, Paul, Charis, EJ, Laura, Sung, NOK, Stephen, Heidi, Kristin, Luke, Sea, Shannon, Thomas, Will, Jamie, Waverly, Brent, Tanner, Rick, Kazys, Dorothy, Katherine, Emily, Theo, Nichole, Paul, Karen, Randi, Caelan, Tom, Don, Susan, Corbin, Keena, Robin, Peter, Whitney, Kenned, Margaret, Daniel, Karen, David, Earl, Jocelyn, Gary, Krysta, Elizabeth, Southern California Carnivorous Plant Enthusiasts, Pattypollinators, Peter, Judson, Ella, Alex, Dan, Pamela, Peter, Andrea, Nathan, Karyn, Michelle, Jillian, Chellie, Linda, Laura, Miz Holly, Christie, Carlos, Paleo Fern, Levi, Sylvia, Lanny, Ben, Lily, Craig, Sarah, Lor, Monika, Brandon, Jeremy, Suzanne, Kristina, Christine, Silas, Michael, Aristia, Felicidad, Lauren, Danielle, Allie, Jeffrey, Amanda, Tommy, Marcel, C Leigh, Karma, Shelby, Christopher, Alvin, Arek, Chellie, Dani, Paul, Dani, Tara, Elly, Colleen, Natalie, Nathan, Ario, Laura, Cari, Margaret, Mary, Connor, Nathan, Jan, Jerome, Brian, Azomonas, Ellie, University Greens, Joseph, Melody, Patricia, Matthew, Garrett, John, Ashley, Cathrine, Melvin, OrangeJulian, Porter, Jules, Griff, Joan, Megan, Marabeth, Les, Ali, Southside Plants, Keiko, Robert, Bryce, Wilma, Amanda, Helen, Mikey, Michelle, German, Joerg, Cathy, Tate, Steve, Kae, Carole, Mr. Keith Santner, Lynn, Aaron, Sara, Kenned, Brett, Jocelyn, Ethan, Sheryl, Runaway Goldfish, Ryan, Chris, Alana, Rachel, Joanna, Lori, Paul, Griff, Matthew, Bobby, Vaibhav, Steven, Joseph, Brandon, Liam, Hall, Jared, Brandon, Christina, Carly, Kazys, Stephen, Katherine, Manny, doeg, Daniel, Tim, Philip, Tim, Lisa, Brodie, Bendix, Irene, holly, Sara, and Margie.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Conversations like you're about to hear do not happen unless you support In Defensive Plants. |
| 0:04.4 | And now more than ever, we need conversations like this to reach as many ears as possible. |
| 0:08.9 | One of the best ways to help keep In Defensive Plants up and running is to become a patron over at patreon.com |
| 0:14.0 | slash In Defensive Plants. |
| 0:15.8 | In return for a tiny bit of support each month, you will get access to a completely separate |
| 0:20.2 | podcasts. It explores |
| 0:21.5 | a lot of really fun gardening topics, everything from seed collection and storage to growing native |
| 0:26.1 | plants, the struggles of trying to garden in different climates, and so much more. It's a heck of a lot of fun. |
| 0:32.2 | We're learning so much, and we're trying to share that with you. So come on and join the Patreon over |
| 0:36.7 | at patreon.com slash indefensive plants and help keep this show up and running in the process. I hope to see you over there. But in the meantime, on with the show. Hello everyone and welcome to the Indefensive Plants podcast, the official podcast of Indefensive Plants.com. What's up? This is your host, Matt. Welcome to the show. How is everyone doing this week? I'm doing |
| 0:54.4 | great because we are exploring the links between plants and some of my favorite insects on the planet, |
| 0:59.6 | the dragonflies and damselflies. These aerial acrobats are voracious little predators that do a great |
| 1:05.3 | job of helping us control some of our least favorite insects, such as mosquitoes. As you're |
| 1:10.0 | going to hear, dragonflies and |
| 1:11.5 | plants have a surprisingly close connection throughout their entire life cycle, and we can be doing a lot |
| 1:16.6 | to improve conditions for both walks of life in a way that benefits everything, including our day-to-day |
| 1:21.5 | lives. Joining us to talk about this is Dr. Marianne, who has spent a lot of time in urban settings |
| 1:27.1 | trying to understand |
| 1:28.3 | the various factors that influence wetlands and the species that depend on them. This is a very |
| 1:33.9 | important discussion, so I don't want to keep you from it any longer. Let's just jump right into it. |
| 1:37.1 | Without further ado, here's my conversation with Dr. Marianne Peron. I hope you enjoy. All right, Dr. Marianne, welcome to the podcast. It is so great to have you here. |
| 1:58.9 | Let's start off with an introduction. Tell everyone a little bit about who you are and what it is you do. |
... |
Transcript will be available on the free plan in 12 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from In Defense of Plants, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of In Defense of Plants and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.