Readers’ wildlife photographs

September 5, 2016 • 7:30 am

Keep the photos coming in, folks.  I’ve got a tank that’s pretty full, but I can always use more snaps. Today’s photos come from reader Mike McDowell, who sends some insects—tiger beetles—that he calls “amazingly cool” (I agree). Here’s his introduction to a series of gorgeous photographs:

Below you’ll find links to this summer’s tiger beetle collection ― it was difficult but enjoyable work!
I photographed the Common Claybank (a lifer for me) and Splendid just today [Sept. 4] at Spring Green Preserve SNA in southern Wisconsin. Some of these beetles were photographed along the Wisconsin River near Sauk City. The Ghost Tiger Beetles were photographed near Buena Vista Grasslands in Portage County. There are 16 tiger beetle species found in Wisconsin, so now I have four left to find and photograph. Three of the remaining ones are found in the northern half of Wisconsin, so it will take some traveling. The Twelve-spotted Tiger Beetle is extremely difficult to find in our state; someone found a few near Appleton this summer, but they were gone the following day.

Mike also sends a quote:

“We know that this interest in tiger beetles is not mystical, but if you talk to tiger beetle aficionados about their hobby, most of them will not be able to explain the source of what the uninitiated may see as a mania.”
― David Pearson, Field Guide to the Tiger Beetles of US & Canada
And the insects:
Common Claybank Tiger Beetle, Cicindela limbalis:
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Splendid Tiger Beetle, Cicindela splendida: 
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Big Sand Tiger Beetle, Cicindela formosa generosa:
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Punctured Tiger Beetle, Cicindela punctulata punctulata:
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Ghost Tiger Beetle, Ellipsoptera lepida:
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Bronzed Tiger Beetle, Cicindela repanda repanda:
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Six-spotted Tiger Beetle, Cicindela sexguttata:
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Festive Tiger Beetle, Cicindela scutellaris lecontei:
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14 thoughts on “Readers’ wildlife photographs”

  1. EXCELLENT tiger photos!! These are a difficult group to get good snaps of. What is your secret, if I may ask? Thanks for sharing them.

    1. Hi Jim,

      Thanks!

      Cool mornings are best, just after the beetles have emerged from their burrows when they’re not quite as fast and alert. The rest is in the approach. The most difficult part is when you’re around 3 to 5 feet away from the beetle. Watch the beetle’s reaction to you. If it turns away or begins to open its elytra, it’s getting ready to take flight. The lower your body is to the ground the less skittish they are, so slowly drop to your knees using very slow and fluid movements. If you move your arms or legs too suddenly, they’ll fly or run. You may have to crawl on the ground for your final approach. To get these portraits, the front of my macro lens has to be around 4 to 8 inches away from the beetle. At this point I’m either on my knees or prone with both elbows on the ground. One hand steadies the camera while the other manipulates the camera. Manual focus works best and I occasionally use a flash with a diffuser. Finding habitat where there are lots of tiger beetles also improves your chances of getting good portraits. Naturally, many approaches result in a practice drill.

      Mike

      1. Thanks. That is how I stalk ’em, except for the mornings part. That temporal challenge also explains why I generally suck at getting pictures of Aeschnid dragonflies.

  2. Seeing these beetles puts in mind of the famous exchange between J B S Haldane and an earnest theologian. The theologian asked Haldane what his studies of nature had taught him about god, and Haldane came straight back with “That he is inordinately fond of beetles”

  3. VERY good!! This woke me right up. Could you explain how you get these pictures? So far I have limited success. Only the six-spotted, which seems a tad more tolerant than the other species I encounter.

  4. Beautiful monsters. Or maybe monstrous beauty? I think amazingly cool does hit the nail squarely on the head.

  5. These are great, and what a great hobby/obsession! I guess I should check which tiger beetles I have near me. I know we have the six-spotted tiger beetles. They’re a constant presence on the hiking trails but only a sick and nearly dead one allowed me to get close enough to catch it without a net. That you could get close enough to take these photos shows either great skill or great technology, or a mixture of both I guess. Thanks for sharing.

  7. In Coconut Grove, when I a kid, we used to capture night flying Click-Beetles with two glowing eye-like spots on their thorax We called them Fire-Flies, not knowing what real fire-flies looked like, (I don’t know if real fire-flies live in South Florida/Miami area) Today I Googled them and found out they are called Pyrophorus Beetles, but for little kids in Coconut Grove in the 1950’s I think Fire-Flies was a good and appropriate name. I hope little kids are still out there chasing them in the dark all over South Florida!

  10. So can we expect the Festive Tiger Beetle to be the one who hosts all the beetle
    get-togethers? (I just couldn’t resist).

    Your patience and photographic skills are top notch!

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