Sometimes They Look Back

So there I was minding my own business... Well, I was actually spying on this little red dragonfly. So I guess what I was really doing was minding the dragonfly's business. Sometimes when we look at a wild animal it decides to look right back at us.

Out of all the animals, bugs of any kind seem like the most alien creatures to us. We never expect them to notice anything we do. We humans think we can walk right up to them, and they never even know we exist. Oh sure, they will try to get away from us, or in some cases they will bite or sting. But look back at us? Bugs? Sometimes they look back.

Anyway, I was standing there taking pictures of this little red dragonfly. I've done this many times before. There are a lot of dragonflies when you are out at a place that is so full of nature. Dragonflies are some of the bigger bugs you might find. They can bite, but they are mostly harmless.

So, what makes this particular time any more special than all the others? Go on, take a guess.

Too easy! The dragonfly looked right back up at me. I'm sure that it probably didn't need to move its head up to see me, but I guess it must have wanted a really good look at the big creature that was paying such special attention to it.

As I said before, compared to most other creatures, bugs seem very alien to us. It can be very startling if we se them look right at us. Why? Maybe it's because that makes them seem a bit more like us. Maybe it shows an intelligence in these alien creatures that we don't want to think about or didn't realize existed. We wonder what this creature is thinking about when it focuses so closely on us. What will it do about this?

What do you think about this? What would you do if a big bug suddenly turned and looked right at you?


Nature Center Magazine - Today we will show you how to make a pine cone bird feeder.