WESTERLY, R.I. – A day at a Rhode Island beach took on a scene straight out of a movie when a swarm of dragonflies attacked beachgoers.
Video posted to social media shows people at Misquamicut Beach in Westerly on Saturday, hiding under towels as the insects fly overhead.
“It’s kind of scary,” one person can be heard saying in a video posted to X (formerly Twitter) by user @Getlucky12341. “Is the world going to end?”
“Hundreds of thousands of dragonflies”
“Invasion of the dragonflies!” was the caption Mark Stickney wrote on a video he posted to Facebook, telling WBZ-TV that he arrived at the beach around 11 a.m. and “dragonflies started appearing everywhere.”
At about 1pm the largest group migrated in from the ocean.
“There must have been hundreds of thousands of dragonflies,” Stickney said. “It was surreal.”
Stickney said the dragonflies weren’t bothering anyone and most beachgoers stayed put, adding that they reminded him of X-wing fighter jets from “Star Wars.”
“I thought it was amazing,” he said. “It was an amazing sight.”
What causes dragonfly swarms?
Ginger Brown, a dragonfly expert in Rhode Island, said the swarm occurred outside of the dragonflies’ usual migration period of mid-August to mid-September, when they are known to migrate when their marsh or wetland habitats dry up, Brown said.
“It’s entirely possible that that’s what we’re seeing right now,” Brown said. “They can travel long distances with relative ease.”
Brown said dragonflies are an important part of the ecosystem because they not only eat mosquitoes and other pests, but also provide food for birds and insectivorous plants.
“They’re vital in the web of life,” she said.
Brown added that anyone caught in a swarm of dragonflies need not fear.
“Just enjoy the phenomenon,” she said. “They have excellent eyesight so they won’t fly into your face.”
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