Geographic Range
Cicindela hirticollis
, commonly called the hairy-necked tiger beetle, is one of the most widely distributed
tiger beetle species in North America, with its subspecies occupying more limited
ranges. The subspecies
Cicindela hirticollis hirticollis
ranges from the southeast U.S. to New York state, and west to the southern Midwest.
The subspecies
Cicindela hirticollis rugifrons
and
Cicindela hirticollis rhodensis
are present in the New England states and the upper Midwest.
Cicindela hirticollis siuslawensis
has historically been found near rivers along the pacific coast from central Washington
to northern California.
Habitat
These tiger beetles are typically found in littoral-riparian areas near aquatic environments.
Their burrows are located in moist soils that are far enough away from water bodies
to avoid being inundated with water.
Cicindela hirticollis
is most frequently found on the sandy shorelines of rivers, lakes, and oceans. These
areas promote the ability of
Cicindela hirticollis
females to inject their ovipositors into the soil to deposit eggs. After hatching,
the larva digs a cylindrical burrow at the site of oviposition.
- Habitat Regions
- temperate
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- desert or dune
Physical Description
Adult Cicindela hirticollis are dull brown in color, and about 12 to 14 mm in length. Adults have hind wings that are transparent and they are folded under the elytra (hard front wings) when at rest. Hairy-neck tiger beetles are also usually well camouflaged in their environment. The color of a beetle usually matches the color of the soil surrounding its burrow site. Larvae are white with yellowish hues.
A key diagnostic feature of
Cicindela hirticollis
is a visibly hairy thorax during their fall emergence from the ground. This feature
gives this species the common name of "hairy-necked". The hairs are degraded and partially
lost during overwintering underground due to abrasion, and this process continues
after their emergence from the ground during the spring and summer. Another diagnostic
feature is that the posterior ends of the wing covers are pointed.
- Other Physical Features
- ectothermic
- heterothermic
- bilateral symmetry
Development
Cicindela hirticollis
has a spring-fall, breeding-pupation cycle. Larval development occurs in 3 instars
over 1 to 3 years depending on prey availability and climate conditions. Beetles in
the southern extents of their range exhibit 1 year life cycle development, and in
the northern-most area of their range will exhibit up to 3 year life cycle development.
Larvae reach maturation in the fall, when an adult beetle emerges and feeds until
cold weather drives them back underground for the winter for hibernation.
- Development - Life Cycle
- metamorphosis
- diapause
Reproduction
There is little known about the mating habits of
Cicindela hirticollis
. Mating takes place in the spring after adults emerge from overwintering. Males have
been known to exhibit mate guarding of females against other males after copulation.
- Mating System
- polygynous
After mating in the spring, females lay eggs. Females use ovipositors to inject eggs
into the ground for larval development. Each egg is injected into its own hole in
moist, fine sand in shady areas. This protects the eggs and larvae, as they are sensitive
to desiccation and prolonged submersion.
- Key Reproductive Features
- seasonal breeding
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- fertilization
- oviparous
Females provide provisioning in eggs, and also lay the eggs in moist, sandy soils
where the larvae will live upon hatching. Once the eggs are laid, the females leave
and do not return.
- Parental Investment
-
pre-hatching/birth
-
provisioning
- female
-
provisioning
Lifespan/Longevity
Larval development of
Cicindela hirticollis
alone can take 1 to 3 years. Adults live for about 10 months, from late fall to late
summer of the next year, but over half of that time is spent overwintering and inactive.
Behavior
These tiger beetles dig burrows in which they live and secure prey. Cicindela hirticollis are ambush predators that sit at the mouth of their burrows with their jaws open and their heads and thorax flush with the ground surface. This posture helps to camouflage the burrow entrance. Prey is grabbed with their mandibles and pulled into the burrow during consumption. Non-digestible portions of prey are pulled out of the burrows and flung away from the entrance.
Adult
hairy-necked tiger beetles
are diurnal insects that are most active on warm, sunny days and will retreat into
their burrow on overcast days and at sunset.
Cicindela hirticollis
are ectothermic, so they regulate body temperatures through behavioral mechanisms
such as basking and stilting above the substrate, seeking microclimates that favor
damp or shaded areas, and digging burrows.
- Key Behaviors
- cursorial
- terricolous
- flies
- diurnal
- motile
- hibernation
- solitary
Communication and Perception
There is little information available about the communication and perception of
Cicindela hirticollis
. Larvae have eyes with dense photoreceptors that give them detailed focusing ability
and three-dimensional visual perception.
Food Habits
Both adults and larvae of
Cicindela hirticollis
are predators, and prey upon a variety of arthropods, including insects, spiders,
and small terrestrial crustaceans. Adults have also been known to scavenge on dead
organisms.
- Primary Diet
-
carnivore
- insectivore
- eats non-insect arthropods
- Animal Foods
- insects
- terrestrial non-insect arthropods
Predation
Cicindela hirticollis
is preyed upon by a variety of invertebrates, including spiders, robber flies, and
dragonflies, as well as vertebrates including toads and lizards. Their quick speed
and ferocious nature allow them to escape or defend against predators.
Ecosystem Roles
During larval development,
Cicindela hirticollis
can be parasitized by flies and wasps. These parasites lay their eggs in the body
of the larvae, which kills the larvae as the parasite hatches and feeds inside. Hairy-necked
tiger beetles are also prey to a large variety of vertebrate and invertebrate predators.
These beetles themselves are significant predators of many invertebrate species.
- flies, Diptera
- wasps, Hymenoptera
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Cicindela hirticollis
has been documented to eat some pest species of insects, such as
aphids
. By feeding on these pest insects, they reduce damage to crops and other plant species
that are beneficial to humans.
- Positive Impacts
- controls pest population
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
There are no known adverse effects of Cicindela hirticollis on humans.
Conservation Status
Cicindela hirticollis
is not a federally protected species, but it is federally recognized as a species
of concern. Many populations of
C. hirticollis
and its subspecies are declining, such as in New York and California. Historical
habitats have been destroyed by people and their recreational activities on beaches
and lakeshores, such as walking and motor vehicle usage. These disturbances crush
and destroy larval burrows. Their habitat also susceptible to human-altered water
levels, such as in those areas near dams and channels. Conservation of the species
necessitates restricting human access to beaches that the beetles occupy.
Other Comments
There are 11 recognized subspecies of
Cicindela hirticollis
.
Additional Links
Contributors
Justin Denelsbeck (author), Minnesota State University, Mankato, Robert Sorensen (editor), Minnesota State University, Mankato, Angela Miner (editor), Animal Diversity Web Staff.
- Nearctic
-
living in the Nearctic biogeographic province, the northern part of the New World. This includes Greenland, the Canadian Arctic islands, and all of the North American as far south as the highlands of central Mexico.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- temperate
-
that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- desert or dunes
-
in deserts low (less than 30 cm per year) and unpredictable rainfall results in landscapes dominated by plants and animals adapted to aridity. Vegetation is typically sparse, though spectacular blooms may occur following rain. Deserts can be cold or warm and daily temperates typically fluctuate. In dune areas vegetation is also sparse and conditions are dry. This is because sand does not hold water well so little is available to plants. In dunes near seas and oceans this is compounded by the influence of salt in the air and soil. Salt limits the ability of plants to take up water through their roots.
- marsh
-
marshes are wetland areas often dominated by grasses and reeds.
- swamp
-
a wetland area that may be permanently or intermittently covered in water, often dominated by woody vegetation.
- bog
-
a wetland area rich in accumulated plant material and with acidic soils surrounding a body of open water. Bogs have a flora dominated by sedges, heaths, and sphagnum.
- urban
-
living in cities and large towns, landscapes dominated by human structures and activity.
- suburban
-
living in residential areas on the outskirts of large cities or towns.
- riparian
-
Referring to something living or located adjacent to a waterbody (usually, but not always, a river or stream).
- ectothermic
-
animals which must use heat acquired from the environment and behavioral adaptations to regulate body temperature
- heterothermic
-
having a body temperature that fluctuates with that of the immediate environment; having no mechanism or a poorly developed mechanism for regulating internal body temperature.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- metamorphosis
-
A large change in the shape or structure of an animal that happens as the animal grows. In insects, "incomplete metamorphosis" is when young animals are similar to adults and change gradually into the adult form, and "complete metamorphosis" is when there is a profound change between larval and adult forms. Butterflies have complete metamorphosis, grasshoppers have incomplete metamorphosis.
- diapause
-
a period of time when growth or development is suspended in insects and other invertebrates, it can usually only be ended the appropriate environmental stimulus.
- polygynous
-
having more than one female as a mate at one time
- seasonal breeding
-
breeding is confined to a particular season
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- fertilization
-
union of egg and spermatozoan
- internal fertilization
-
fertilization takes place within the female's body
- oviparous
-
reproduction in which eggs are released by the female; development of offspring occurs outside the mother's body.
- diurnal
-
- active during the day, 2. lasting for one day.
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- hibernation
-
the state that some animals enter during winter in which normal physiological processes are significantly reduced, thus lowering the animal's energy requirements. The act or condition of passing winter in a torpid or resting state, typically involving the abandonment of homoiothermy in mammals.
- solitary
-
lives alone
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- carnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats meat
- insectivore
-
An animal that eats mainly insects or spiders.
References
Brust, M., W. Hoback, K. Skinner, C. Knisley. 2005. Differential Immersion Survival by Populations of Cicindela hirticollis ( Coleoptera : Cicindelidae ). Annals of the Entomological Society of America , 98: 973-979.
Cornelisse, T., J. Hafernik. 2009. Effects of soil characteristics and human disturbance on tiger beetle oviposition. Ecological Entomology , 34/4: 495-503.
Fenster, M., C. Knisley. 2006. Impact of dams on point bar habitat: A case for the extirpation of the Sacramento Valley Tiger Beetle, C. hirticollis abrupta . River Research and Applications , 22/8: 881-904.
Graves, R., M. Krejci, A. Graves. 1988. Geographic variation in the North American tiger beetle Cicindela hirticollis Say, with a description of five new subspecies ( Coleoptera : Cicindelidae ). Canadian Entomologist , 120: 647-678.
Gwiazdowski, R., S. Gillespie, R. Weddle, J. Elkinton. 2011. Laboratory Rearing of Common and Endangered Species of North American Tiger Beetles ( Coleoptera : Carabidae : Cicindelidae ). Annals of the Entomological Society of America , 104: 534-542.
Pearson, D., C. Knisley, C. Kazilek. 2006. A field guide to the tiger beetles of the United States and Canada: identification, natural history, and distribution of Cicindelidae . New York, New York, USA: Oxford University Press.
Schlesinger, M., P. Novak. 2011. Status and conservation of an imperiled tiger beetle fauna in New York State, USA. Journal of Insect Conservation , 15/6: 839-852.