January's Species Spotlight!

This month's Species of Interest is...

Cicindila sylvatica, also known as the Heath tiger beetle!

This is a European bug, and it also just so happens to be the largest tiger beetle in the world at a whopping 15-19 mm. They are somewhat rare and thinly distributed for an insect species, and just as cool as any of its cousin tiger beetles. They are vicious, fast, and diurnal predators, most often seen out in the open in heather, which is open coniferous woodland, chasing small invertebrate prey. You can tell they're predators just by one look at their face... There is only one image of this amazing insect on DA, which illustrates their awesomeness perfectly:

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Though Heath tiger beetles dart around at rapid speeds after other insects normally, they are quite good at short-distance flights to escape larger threats. The adults can be observed in the wild areas of Surrey, Dorset, Sussex and Hampshire as well as scattered areas throughout Europe (but never in the Mediterranean or the extreme north) during any month when the sun is strong and bright, but at other times only the larvae exist, buried in sand waiting to emerge from August to February. For most of this time the larvae are dormant, but directly after hatching and before the climate becomes too cold for their prey the larva also attack tiny invertebrates. Their favorite foods seem to be ants and soft, squishy caterpillars. Yum!

I'd love to see someone try to anthropomorphize this type of tiger beetle, bearing in mind the anatomy, habits, and nature of this awesome beast. Whoever does so will be given the chance to pick next month's species to put in the spotlight.

Happy New Year, and may the tiger beetles not bite!