Dragonflies swarm Mumbai’s mangroves

Dragonflies have been found to migrate a few thousand kilometres, and Mumbai is lucky to be one of their destinations.

It’s that time of the year in Mumbai now. If you visit the mangroves of Mumbai these days, you will see clouds of dragonflies (Pantala flavescens) dancing above them.

Dragonflies helicoptering above the mangroves at Thane Creek (Photo: Gopal)

Dragonflies undertake one of the longest migrations known among insects. They fly all the way from the Deccan to South Africa riding the North-East monsoon winds. In Kerala, the dragonflies appear just around or after the festival of Onam in September, when the South West Monsoon loses steam and are called Ona-thumbi or the dragonflies of Onam. In Mumbai, we do not have a name but they appear a few weeks after Onam, which is right now.

Vashi Fishing Jetty (Photo: Gopal)

However, not all dragonflies migrate great distances. To be honest, I can’t confirm if these dragonflies are waiting to fly across the sea or go back inland but the timing suggests that these are ready to go on a long journey.

Whatever the journey, they do pause to make use of the moisture in our mangrove forests all over Mumbai and they are a sight to watch.

(Photo: Gopal)

When I posted an image of the dragonflies from the Thane Creek on Twitter, I got a reply from a person who saw bats and kites chase them with mouth and beaks open to gobble them up! And there’s this bird called White Throated Fantail that specializes in it, among other things.

According to experts, using tailwinds from a high altitude tropical system called Inter-tropical convergence zone or ITCZ, dragonflies can zoom in 24 hours, from the southwestern tip of India to the Maldives and then go further south-west.

Sid Agarwal, who studied aeronautical engineering, reached out to me with this interesting trivia about the dragonflies “And they eat mosquitoes and their wings are crazy efficient. And the small tips you see at the end of their wings actually work as counter weights. Those studying fixed wing flight are actually made to study this!” He also suggested an illustrated book for children about dragonflies, called Saahi’s Quest from Kalpavriksh, Pune.

The mangroves

The mangrove forest along the eastern seafront of Mumbai and the western side of Navi Mumbai (Photo: Gopal)
Dragonflies at Vashi (Photo: Gopal)

The mangroves of Mumbai have many surprises that are visible and hiding. While I was looking for ways to shoot these dragonflies using my phone, I saw a fisherman from Vashi Gaon slowly go by on his boat checking the crab traps he had placed overnight. He wasn’t very lucky and he pointed out they should all be in that direction. He pointed towards Airoli and Bhandup, to the north and said that the birds are all feeding there today. I am hoping that I will get to see some flamingos feeding here during the low tide.

Fisherman at Vashi (Photo: Gopal)

The skies in Mumbai are slowly turning blue and soon the butterflies will also be here. Keep your eyes peeled open.

(Photo: Gopal)
Spot the dragonfly! (Video: Gopal)

Those interested in knowing more about dragonfly migration can read this beautiful story from cell.com, Masters of the Monsoon

This article first appeared on the the authors blog Mumbai Paused, and has been republished with permission, after minor edits.

Also read:
How a Navi Mumbai citizens group fought for the flamingos

Here’s how we brought some butterflies to our field

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Similar Story

Garudachar palya: The “hot spot” in Whitefield’s IT Hub

Examining the heat island effect in densely built-up Garudachar Palya ward in Whitefield’s IT Hub, which also has limited tree cover.

Garudachar Palya is part of Mahadevapura constituency, with an area of 6.5 sq km, which includes four revenue villages — Garudachar Palya, Hoodi, Seegehalli, and Nallurahalli. These villages have stayed mostly the same, while the city has expanded around them with more organised development from the BDA. This mismatch has led to issues like narrow village lanes becoming crowded with traffic, as they’re now used as shortcuts to bypass main roads. Looking at population growth, between 2011 and 2024, the ward has seen an estimated increase of 62.24%. This rapid growth adds to the existing strain on infrastructure. Ward no…

Similar Story

Saving Dwarka Forest: Citizens approach apex court to protect forest land near Delhi airport

Delhi’s Dwarka Forest has seen brazen destruction thanks to a railway redevelopment project. A recent SC stay order has raised hopes.

According to a recent World Bank report, India presently accounts for a meagre 1.8% of the global forest cover. Even more concerning is the fact that an enormous ‘46,759 acres of forest-land have been sanctioned for mining’ across the country, over the course of the last five years, by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) itself. According to many ace climate scientists and researchers, our planet has already hit “the tipping point”. In this backdrop, the people’s struggle to save Dwarka Forest, one of the last remaining natural forest lands in a choking capital city, is a…