Raising Odonate larvae is fun to do. Especially Aeshnid larvae are nice, as they are active hunters and one could watch them hunt their prey for hours without getting too bored. Raising larvae isn't too difficult.

So, what do you need?

• A fish tank or bowl or something like that, filled with water. Water is best taken from the place where you also get the larva. Generally spoken, for pond species pond water is perfect and for stream species, take stream water. Yep, it's that simple.

• A larva. Once you've caught a larva you want to raise, you have to transport it home. It's best to transport a larva on wet moss (like Sphagnum), not in water. If you do decide to transport it in water, make sure there's a stick or stone in the container the larva can cling to. (If you catch an ovipositing female odonate, you may be able to collect some eggs instead.)

• Oxygen supply. Two possible sources of oxygen are: aquatic plants and aquarium air pumps. Some stream species (Calopteryx spp. and most Gomphids I know of for instance) don't need a supply like that but are best kept in a large, flat bowl, so that the water surface is large in relation to the volume.

• Food for the larva. The kind of food depends on the size of the larva:
• Tiny little larvae eat tiny little creatures. Those are bred by millions in water with some grass or flowers in it. So put some grass or flowers in a vase with water and wait about a week. The water then contains loads of microscopical monsters, which are excellent baby larvae food. Lately somebody told me that banana peels are even better than flowers or grass.
• Larvae a bit larger eat creatures a bit larger. Sounds simple and it is. Ponds are loaded with food for larvae. Small Anisopteran larvae and most Zygopteran larvae feed on small but visible stuff like water flees (Daphnia spp.). Those are easy to catch with a fine-meshed net.
• Larvae one more size larger, like Libellulid larvae in their final instar or half-grown Aeshnid larvae, eat small water creatures like mosquito and mayfly larvae and tubifex. Those are also easilly caught in a pond.
• Large anisopteran larvae, like Aeshnids in their final instar, eat anything that moves and is smaller than themselves. Small fishes, tadpoles, water beetles, even large worms, you name it. I once fed a large Aeshnid (Aeshna juncea) larva aquatic woodlice and large mayfly larvae for months. But the snails I put in the tank to keep the windows clean weren't left untouched either: that one single larva ate six large and loads of smaller snails during it's stay in it's tank. Once I've got the opportunity, I'll scan a slide showing the larva devouring a snail almost as large as itself. It took her only an hour or so.

• Substrate like that of the habitat the larva usually lives in. Many riverine species prefer stones, species of small streams prefer sand (some of them, the so-called 'burrowers', like to burrow during the day, so the layer of substrate has to be thick enough to make that possible. Burrowers are mostly Gomphids, but also Cordulegaster spp. burrow.) Most pond species don't care about substrate, however. Especially the species that spend their time away from the substrate, hanging in the plants, don't seem to need substrate at all. For bottom dwellers that don't burrow, small pebbles are perfect as they prevent the larvae from slipping on the glass bottom.

• Finally: a sturdy stick that enables the larva to climb out of the water. Don't worry about your larva escaping: it won't climb out of the water unless it's going to emerge directly after. The stick must be high enough to enable the larva to emerge without touching the water surface. I don't think there's an ideal hight, but I think for most species about a feet is enough (that is the distance from the water surface to the upper end of the stick). The Aeshnid larva I raised climbed up the stick until it reached the end, then made climbing movements with it's front legs for about ten minutes and finally gave up, after which it emerged at the place it was. Some Libellulid and Cordulid larvae might want to climb farther away from the water, maybe even to the ceiling or into curtains. Gomphids from stoney rivers seem to prefer a large stone to emerge on, rather than a stick. Those species often emerge horizontally.

I was told that odonate larvae need to be put on a cool spot during winter. Room temperature is too warm, so put it on a cooler place. Larvae kept at room temperature die during winter. In winter, the larvae aren't very active, as aren't the other creatures in the tank ( = the food ), but they don't really hibernate. They just don't move and eat as much as they do during other seasons. Watch the temperature however, most larvae don't survive freezing!

And then, after months or even years of fun with your pet, the day comes it turns into a beautiful dragonfly or damselfly. That process is called emergence and takes place on the stick or rock, above the water surface. That's really worth seeing, even if it happens at night. The Aeshna juncea I raised emerged at night. I didn't sleep all night, just to make pictures (with flash and use of a tripod) and observe. Check out those pictures here.
If you didn't know yet what species the larva is, the adult will tell you as they are much easier to identify. And as soon as you know that, you can collect the adult or release it.

Read (more) about the emergence itself in the Lifecycle section. And read about collecting the remaining larval case or exuviae in the Collecting section.