Minnesota Dragonfly Society

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Plymouth, MN
Minnesota Dragonfly Society

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501(c)(3) organization formed to ensure conservation of Minnesota’s dragonflies and damselflies through research and education.

09/14/2026

Attention Minnesota Dragonfly Society Members:

The weather forecast is good for Saturday’s MDS Members picnic and ode hunt at North Mississippi Regional Park in Minneapolis. We have been seeing Russet-tipped Clubtails, Elusive Clubtails, Wandering Gliders, Common Green Darners, Black Saddlebags and recently Variegated Meadowhawks have joined in at the park.

Date: Saturday, September 19th from 9am to 3pm.
Place: North Mississippi Regional Park. Shelter B, Turtle Shelter. Plenty of parking is available in the north lot. We have reserved a picnic shelter from 9am to 3pm. You enter at the intersection of 53rd Av N and Lyndale Av N on the curve. It will be the second shelter, marked B, just beyond the circle round in the parking lot.

Please let us know if you are coming so we can plan food. You may reply to this post or to [email protected]. We will have our hats and T-shirts available at the shelter. There will be a short business meeting followed by plenty of time for swinging nets, photographing odes and putting faces to the Fb posts you’ve seen all summer.

09/10/2026

So many free opportunities and only so many hours on Saturday! MDS is participating in 3 events on Saturday, 9/12/2026. We invite you to join us at one or all.

FIRST UP Starting at 10am – Monarch Festival:
Time: 10am-4pm
Place: Lake Nokomis Community Center area, 2401 E Minnehaha Pkwy, Minneapolis, MN
Come along and celebrate the Monarch’s amazing 2,300-mile migration from Minnesota to Mexico with music, food, dance, art and native plant sales. Many opportunities to get close-up with Monarchs!

NEXT UP Starting at noon – Bees, Bergamot and Birds: A Bioblitz on the Crow:
Time: Noon-3pm
Place: Riverbend Group Camp at Crow-Hassan Park Reserve, 27017 Territorial Rd, Rogers, MN
Become a nature observer and get to know some of the organisms living near the Crow River by participating in a bioblitz.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST Starting at 4pm – Bugs, Blankets & Bluegrass:
Time: 4pm-7pm
Place: Richardson Nature Center, 8737 E Bush Lake Rd, Bloomington, MN 55438
Experience the magic of tallgrass prairies and insects at this all-ages event! Pack up dinner and a blanket to enjoy a picnic in the prairie while listening to live folk and bluegrass music by The May North. Venture into the grasses with sweep nets and bug-catching jars, make a prairie-inspired craft, meet live animals and learn about the captivating world of monarch migration. All ages welcome.

09/03/2026

Just a reminder, Monarch Festival is coming up fast. MDS will be participating again this year. Look for us near the MN Zoo inflatables. We will be in Quad U with the MN Zoo, Bell Museum and Terra Encantada.

Date: Saturday, 9/12/2026
Time: 10am-4pm
Place: 49th Street & Woodland Blvd, east of Lake Nokomis Community Center on Minnehaha Pkwy, Minneapolis, MN 55417.

08/23/2026

MDS is seeking volunteers to help at our Monarch Fest booth. No experience necessary. If you are interested in helping, please reach out to our co-event leaders: AmyJo and Claire at their email addresses listed below.

Event: Minneapolis Monarch Festival held at Lake Nokomis at 49th St & Woodland Blvd
Date: Saturday, September 12, 2026 from 10am-4pm
Set-up at 9am and takedown at 4pm.
Co-leads: [email protected] & [email protected]

07/15/2026

One of our most popular events is happening this Saturday, July 18th from 10am to 2pm as we partner with the great Three River Park folks at Eastman Nature Center for Dragonfly Festival.

Details:
Date: Saturday, July 18, 2026
Time: 10am-2pm
Place: Eastman Nature Center, 13351, Elm Creek Rd, Osseo, MN 55369

This is a fun event for all ages. There is a tent with dragonflies you can step into for an up-close experience, visit the pond and swoop for dragonfly and damselfly nymphs along with other macroinvertebrates, join others in the prairie with an aerial net to catch dragonflies and learn the name of the specie you caught, plus you can chat with the MDS volunteers at our booth to ask that dragonfly question you have just got to ask!

If you are interested in volunteering with us, please contact our Event Lead, Claire at [email protected].

07/08/2026

Reminder that there will be an Ode Hunt on the North Shore on Saturday, July 11, 2026. Details below...

For our North Shore Ode Enthusiasts and those willing to travel, MDS is sponsoring an ode hunt on Saturday, July 11 to begin at Tettegouche State Park at 10am. The event leaders will be Jeff Fischer and Mike Moen. If you would like to participate but don’t own an aerial net, Jeff will have 10 extra nets along.
The event will last from 10am to 3pm. Bring footwear that can get wet, along with a lunch, water and snacks to last the 5 hours.

DATE: July 11, 2026, Saturday
STARTING PLACE: Tettegouche State Park, 5702 MN-61, Silver Bay, MN 55614
MEET UP TIME: 10am in the parking lot in front of the Tettegouche Visitor Center
EVENT ENDS: 3pm

The Tettegouche State Park visitors center and its adjacent parking lot are part of a MnDOT Class 1 safety rest area, and you can use them without purchasing a state park vehicle permit. Parking in the park for recreational purposes does require a valid state park vehicle permit.

07/02/2026

For our North Shore Ode Enthusiasts and those willing to travel, MDS is sponsoring an ode hunt on Saturday, July 11 to begin at Tettegouche State Park at 10am. The event leaders will be Jeff Fischer and Mike Moen. If you would like to participate but don’t own an aerial net, Jeff will have 10 extra nets along.

The event will last from 10am to 3pm. Bring footwear that can get wet, along with a lunch, water and snacks to last the 5 hours.

DATE: July 11, 2026, Saturday
STARTING PLACE: Tettegouche State Park, 5702 MN-61, Silver Bay, MN 55614
MEET UP TIME: 10am in the parking lot in front of the Tettegouche Visitor Center
EVENT ENDS: 3pm

The Tettegouche State Park visitors center and its adjacent parking lot are part of a MnDOT Class 1 safety rest area and you can use them without purchasing a state park vehicle permit. Parking in the park for recreational purposes does require a valid state park vehicle permit.

06/16/2026

Please come on down 6/20/26 Saturday (meeting, field trip and picnic) and 6/21/2026 Sunday (field trip) for this MDS Event. We will have a short meeting followed by field trips to search for dragonflies and damselflies and wrap up Saturday evening with a a member's picnic. You can join right at the event!

While the Event posted on our June Calendar under June 20 & 21, 2026 states registration is not required, IT IS REQUIRED IF YOU WILL BE STAYING FOR THE PICNIC. (How else will we know how much food to get?)

Here are the event details:

Saturday, 6/20: Check-in Time at 8:30am
Location: Chester Woods, 8378 Hwy 14, East Eyota, MN
Park Pavilion # 5
Business meeting from 9am-10am
Following the meeting we will break into 2 groups for a field trip lasting from 10am to 5pm. We will carpool so bring a bag lunch with you.
Members picnic from 6pm to 8pm back at Pavilion # 5.

Sunday, 6/21: Chester Woods, near Pavilion # 5 . Gather at 8:30am to again break into two groups for a field trip lasting from 9am to noon and returning back to the parking lot at Chester Woods.

If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]

The registration link is available at our website (www.mndragonfly.org) under the Events tab in the June calendar under the dates of June 20 & 21.

The species we will be going for are: Sioux Snaketail, Variable Dancer, Rusty Snaketail, Horned Clubtail, Pronghorn Clubtail, Plains Clubtail, Red Saddlebags, Ebony Jewelwing, River Jewelwing, Blue-tipped Dancer, Sweetflag Spreadwing and more.

See park map below with arrow pointing to Pavilion # 5.

05/31/2026

MDS has an exciting opportunity for you to get out with other ode enthusiasts next Sunday, 6/7/2026 to explore the MN side of the St Croix River with ode expert Jeff Fischer in search of dragonflies on the wing. Starting place will be within Wild River State Park requiring your vehicle to have a valid MN State Park pass.

DETAILS
Date: Sunday, 6/7/2026
Time: 10:00am
Place: Wild River State Park, 39797 Park Trail, Center City, MN 55012
Meeting site in the park: Nevers Dam Parking Lot. See map below marked with bold arrow to Meeting up lot.

05/16/2026

Are you interested in participating in a St Croix survey for odes on the wing? Join Jeff Fischer for a field trip on Sunday, June 7th at 10am to begin at Wild River State Park. We will meet at the Nevers Dam Parking lot within the park. You will need a valid MN State Park Pass to enter the park. Because some of the field trip stops have limited parking, we will carpool and will leave the unused vehicles in the parking lot where we will return there at the end of the outing.

Date: Sunday, June 7th
Time: 10am
Place: Wild River State Park, 39797 Park Trail, Center City, MN 55012
Meet up at: Nevers Dam Parking Lot

Early June is a bonanza time along the St Croix River (and Sunrise River) especially if you fancy Clubtails. While we can’t guarantee all these species, a glance at the Chisago County records on Odonata Central shows sightings of 20+ Clubtail species from late May to early June. Some of my favs include: Black-shouldered Spinyleg, Splendid Clubtail, Cobra Clubtail, Skillet Clubtail. Pygmy Snaketail, Rusty Snaketail and St Croix Snaketail. Other species likely to see are Springtime Darners, American Emerald, Stream & Swift River Cruisers and possibly all 4 Baskettails (Beaverpond, Common, Prince & Spiny).

You will want to bring along water and pack a lunch or at least a granola bar or two for the outing. Hope to see you there!

Address

Minnesota Dragonfly Society P. O. Box 46192
Plymouth, MN
55446

Website

http://www.mndragonfly.org/

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