This book is the first to allow you to experience the details of the ultra-fast lives of dragonflies, these large, beautiful flying insects, through an abundance of unique snapshots and image sequences. Dragonflies are world champions of flight, bionic wonders; they reveal much about the mysteries of evolution. We witness their social interaction, and appreciate their success over three hundred million years. Dragonflies - what an evocative name! - are easy to observe, even for beginners. About 80 species live in Germany, and every body of water is home to a few. They are not shy, do not sting and often come very close. Perhaps you will fall in love with dragonflies - just like the two authors who have been studying them for over 30 years. With the knowledge in this book, you will look at dragonflies in a completely novel way.

About the Authors

Georg Rüppell was Professor of Behavioral Ecology at the Technical University of Braunschweig and has supervised over 300 studies with his working group, many of them on dragonflies. It was the quick-reaction training he got through his teenage sporting activities, he finds, that helped him to be constantly alert to the abrupt flight movements around him. He was the first biologist in the world to take up the field study of bird flight using slow-mo, and subsequently apply his expertise to dragonflies. He met his wife Dagmar Hilfert-Rüppell on a research trip to the dragonflies of Japan.

Dagmar Hilfert-Rüppell has been studying and filming dragonflies for 30 years. She is particularly fond of damselflies, about which she wrote her doctoral thesis. She has developed infinite patience when filming to capture new behaviors in close-up. She is also the inspired driving force behind their numerous trips all around the world.

這本書是第一本讓你透過大量獨特的快照和影像序列，體驗蜻蜓這種大型、美麗的飛行昆蟲超快速生活細節的書籍。蜻蜓是飛行的世界冠軍，生物仿生的奇蹟；它們揭示了許多有關進化之謎的資訊。我們見證了它們的社交互動，並欣賞它們三億年以來的成功。蜻蜓——這個引人遐想的名字！——即使對初學者來說也很容易觀察。在德國約有80種蜻蜓，每個水體都有幾隻。它們不害羞，不會蜇人，並且經常靠得很近。也許你會愛上蜻蜓——就像這兩位研究蜻蜓超過30年的作者一樣。擁有這本書中的知識後，你將以全新的方式看待蜻蜓。

關於作者

Georg Rüppell曾任布倫瑞克工業大學的行為生態學教授，並且在他的工作小組中指導了超過300項研究，其中許多是關於蜻蜓的。他認為，正是他青少年時期的運動活動所獲得的快速反應訓練，幫助他時刻保持對周圍突然飛行動作的警覺。他是世界上第一位使用慢動作技術進行鳥類飛行野外研究的生物學家，並隨後將他的專業知識應用於蜻蜓研究。他在一次前往日本研究蜻蜓的旅行中遇見了他的妻子Dagmar Hilfert-Rüppell。

Dagmar Hilfert-Rüppell已經研究和拍攝蜻蜓30年。她特別喜愛豆娘，並以此撰寫了她的博士論文。她在拍攝中培養了無限的耐心，以捕捉新的行為特寫。她也是他們在世界各地多次旅行的靈感推動力。

Georg Rüppell was Professor of Behavioral Ecology at the Technical University of Braunschweig and has supervised over 300 studies with his working group, many of them on dragonflies. It was the quick-reaction training he got through his teenage sporting activities, he finds, that helped him to be constantly alert to the abrupt flight movements around him. He was the first biologist in the world to take up the field study of bird flight using slow-mo, and subsequently apply his expertise to dragonflies. He met his wife Dagmar Hilfert-Rüppell on a research trip to the dragonflies of Japan.

Dagmar Hilfert-Rüppell has been studying and filming dragonflies for 30 years. She is particularly fond of damselflies, about which she wrote her doctoral thesis. She has developed infinite patience when filming to capture new behaviors in close-up. She is also the inspired driving force behind their numerous trips all around the world.

喬治·魯佩爾（Georg Rüppell）是布倫瑞克工業大學（Technical University of Braunschweig）行為生態學的教授，並且在他的研究小組中指導了超過300項研究，其中許多是關於蜻蜓的研究。他認為，正是他青少年時期的運動活動所獲得的快速反應訓練，幫助他時刻保持對周圍突然飛行動作的警覺。他是世界上第一位利用慢動作技術進行鳥類飛行實地研究的生物學家，並隨後將他的專業知識應用於蜻蜓研究。他在一次前往日本研究蜻蜓的旅行中遇見了他的妻子達格瑪·希爾費特·魯佩爾（Dagmar Hilfert-Rüppell）。

達格瑪·希爾費特·魯佩爾（Dagmar Hilfert-Rüppell）已經研究和拍攝蜻蜓30年。她特別喜愛豆娘，並以此撰寫了她的博士論文。她在拍攝時展現出無限的耐心，以捕捉新的行為特徵。她也是他們在世界各地進行多次旅行的靈感推動力。