Have you noticed that some people (usually women) say they have a headache as a way to say ‘no’ to their “mating” partner? Well, animals do that, too. Animals usually play dead to avoid being killed or eaten by predators. Well, some play dead to reject male suitors. The story was first brought by New Scientist.

According to their story, female dragonflies dodge pesky suitors by playing dead. Every time an unwanted male companion approaches cute females, they plunge to the ground. Yes, they’d even fake their own death!

Experts at the Ecological Society of America conducted a study to determine the real reasons behind this behavior. They observed 31 dragonflies. Believe it or not, 27 dragonflies played dead to avoid males. Six dragonflies didn’t have luck, because their suitors found them desirable despite the fact they were “dead.”

Rassim Khelifa, lead researcher from the University of Zurich, Switzerland, knew what these ladies were up to because they came to life once their companions flew away.

These females may be right to act this way, because moorland hawker dragonflies may end up with permanent damage to their reproductive tracts after mating. Poor females!

This doesn’t change the fact that this is a surprising behavior, and this is the first time this behavior has been observed in dragonflies. And yes, they do this all the time.

Khelifa said he was surprised. Wonder why? He’s been studying dragonflies for 10 years.

Nature hides so many surprises for us, and we usually ignore the simplest things that pop in front of us. People are too focused on their life and problems, and let’s be honest, most of you don’t know a thing about dragonflies or animals in general. It’s time to rebuild your connection with nature.

Sources:
www.mnn.com
www.nationalgeographic.com