Status of the tiger beetle Cicindela hirticollis Say (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae) in New York City and on Long Island, New York, USA

Authors

Jonathan R. Mawdsley, The H. John Heinz III Center for Science, Economics and the EnvironmentFollow
Matthew D. Schlesinger, New York Natural Heritage Program, Albany, NYFollow
Tim Simmons, Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program, West Boylston MAFollow
Orland J. Blanchard, Florida State Collection of ArthropodsFollow

Date of this Version

9-12-2013

Citation

Insecta Mundi 0317: 1-7

Comments

Published in 2013 by Center for Systematic Entomology, Inc. P. O. Box 141874 Gainesville, FL 32614-1874 USA http://www.centerforsystematicentomology.org/

Copyright held by the author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons, Attribution Non-Commercial License

Abstract

Coastal species are under considerable threat from recreational activities and climate change. The tiger beetle Cicindela hirticollis Say (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae) was recorded historically from 30 locations along the shores of New York City and Long Island, New York. We conducted surveys for extant populations of this species at 40 sites from 1989 to 2010. Adults of C. hirticollis were found at 13 beaches. Only four sites had 40 or more adults of C. hirticollis active at the time the beach was surveyed. No beetles were detected on the large coastal beaches that were formerly occupied by this species. Many coastal beaches of New York receive heavy human foot and vehicle traffic and are therefore unlikely to provide suitable habitat for C. hirticollis without a shift in beach management that recognizes the potential of some beaches as wilderness systems capable of supporting the full array of beach-dependent species.