Six-spotted Tiger Beetle

For a lot of identifications I warn people not to be too focused on color [1]. Whether it's due to funny lighting or natural variation within a species or natural variation over the life of an individual, color can easily fool you [2].

So today I'm showing 2 different Six-spotted Tiger Beetles, 1 that's a greenish-blue and another that's more of an emerald green. Though they're small, their (usually) vivid color and shininess can get your attention [3]. It's at least possible to think they're different species of beetle, but they're the same beetle.

April 14, 2023 at Sourland Mountain Preserve
Photo 272130292, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

April 14, 2023 at Sourland Mountain Preserve
Photo 272130320, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

[1] While I'm not immune to making this mistake these days, I used to make this mistake a lot when I first started trying to ID our plants and animals.

[2] My Newcomb's Wildflower Guide might combat this by having mostly black-and-white pictures, forcing you to look at other clues when arriving at an identification. 

[3] These beetles are fairly predatory, eating smaller/weaker arthropods. The 2nd beetle appears to be eating something, perhaps an ant.



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