Families enjoying a day at Misquamicut Beach in Westerly, Rhode Island, had a rare close encounter with nature over the weekend. As the people were there to cool off, a swarm of millions of dragonflies seemed to appear out of the ocean and flooded the beach for several minutes.
It’s a phenomenon that sometimes happens during the summer months when the dragonflies are migrating or in mating season. It was a strange and terrifying experience for the people at the beach, however, since they had no idea what was happening. One moment, they were enjoying the sand, sun, and water, and the next, they had a Biblical-sized plague of insects among them.
Some people captured video of the moment on social media. One insect expert thinks this swarm may have been green donna dragonflies from Canada, which were migrating south over the ocean when they were pushed inland by coastal winds. The locals were confused and the children started screaming as they were covered by the insects.
Many people tried swatting them away. This is the one thing you don’t want to do when swarmed with dragonflies. They only tend to bite if you annoy them.
One witness told NBC Connecticut that the strange thing about the occurrence was how quiet the dragonflies were. There was no buzz or hum from their wings as they flooded the beach.
Here is the video that one beachgoer managed to capture of the bizarre experience:
NEW: Swarm of supersized dragonflies invade Misquamicut Beach in Rhode Island.
Beachgoers were seen ducking for cover while others tried swatting them away as the swarm took over the beach.
The insects can travel in swarms of billions, so large that the swarms can show up on… pic.twitter.com/GoUj0ygA2G
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 29, 2024
