A Bronzed Tiger Beetle (Cincindela repanda) that we netted to examine and then release. / © K.P. McFarland
Perhaps you’ve spotted a quick flash of metallic emerald in your yard that was there one second and gone the next. You may have witnessed the lightning fast flight of a common tiger beetle called the Six-spotted Tiger Beetle. Tiger beetles are fast and fierce predators, even as larva. There are 16 species of tiger beetles that have been found in Vermont. Out of those 16, almost half are considered to be of conservation concern.
In this episode of Outdoor Radio, Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra join Mark Ferguson of the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department along the Winooski River searching the sand banks for tiger beetles and their larva holes.
Discover the life-cycle of these remarkable insects and why they love and need sunshine. Learn how the larva hunt from beneath the sand and how the adults can move faster than their own eyes can see. As Kent says, “This is so much better than sci-fi. You can’t make this stuff up!”
Listen to the show
Learn more
- See all the reports of tiger beetles from observer’s like you at the Vermont Atlas of Life on iNaturalist and add your discoveries too!
- Learn more from the Vermont Tiger Beetle Atlas at the Vermont Atlas of Life.
More Images from the Show
Mark Ferguson shows Sara a tiger beetle he captured before releasing it. / © K.P. McFarland
A Bronzed Tiger Beetle (Cincindela repanda) larva hole. / © K.P. McFarland
Outdoor Radio is produced in collaboration with Vermont Public Radio.
