The Brilliantly Colored Six-Spotted Tiger Beetle

BY STEVE BIASETTI, GROUP FOR THE EAST END DIRECTOR OF ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

Six spotted tiger beetle

The insect’s common name is a bit of a mouthful: six-spotted tiger beetle. In fact, the name stretches on this page several times longer than the creature’s real-life length, which is roughly one-half inch. The name does accurately identify it within the subfamily of “tiger beetles,, a large group known for their aggressive predatory habits as well as running speed. Additionally, a six-spotted tiger beetle does often have six white spots along the outer edge of its two wing cases (called elytra). So, I suppose one could say that the name fits. Nonetheless, I’m frustrated that the name ignores the bug’s most striking feature.

A six-spotted tiger beetle is brilliantly, stunningly metallic green. I can’t think of much else in the natural world that is so striking in iridescent emerald color. If you’re familiar with the bright wrapper of an Andes mint chocolate, it makes about the best comparison I can think up.

I saw six-spotted tiger beetles a few times in the last week, in each case while visiting Long Island’s Central Pine Barrens. The experiences were similar. Walking along a sunlit dirt path, a small flying insect caught my attention as it took off a few feet ahead of me, zipped quickly in flight to a spot twenty feet away, and settled back down onto the path. As I approached again, the episode repeated itself. Without binoculars it would be difficult to stalk close enough to get a satisfying look. The beetle would simply take off every time one approached too near. Thankfully in my case, I was appropriately equipped, and was rewarded each time with wonderful looks of these colorful creatures. 

Six-spotted tiger beetles are encountered in woodland habitats on eastern Long Island between April and August. It is a fairly common species, but bring binoculars on your search if you hope to glimpse the six-spotted tiger beetle’s eye-popping colors.