Predatory versatility in a larval dragonfly, Hemianax papuensis (Odonata: Aeshnidae)

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Abstract
Larvae of the large dragonfly Hemianax papuensis used four disparate, prey‐specific predatory behaviours. Arthropod prey moving on a substratum were stalked and then attacked from a distance. Arthropod prey moving in the water column or at the water surface were approached using ‘jet’ propulsion and then attacked from a distance. Snails, an unusual prey for an arthropod, were stalked; then the larva manoeuvred about them until a specific orientation was achieved before an attack was made from close range. Dead snails were scavenged, using tactics very similar to those used with live snails, but non‐snail carrion was rarely taken. There was no evidence that the possession, by H. papuensis, of specialized behaviours for an atypical prey‐snails‐lowered its success when attacking other types of ‘typical’ prey.