On November 11 India celebrated ‘World Tiger Beetle Day’ through a virtual get-together on David Pearson’s birthday to honour his contributions to tiger beetle studies in India and globally and to popularise these amazing colourful predators.
On the day, Pearson gave a talk on tiger beetles, their natural history, fascinating behaviours, diversity, ecology and conservation methods. The talk was followed by discussions with participants, made up of a diverse group of students, naturalists, wildlife educators, conservationists, nature lovers and researchers.
ROAR, a wildlife NGO, launched four Indian tiger beetle species lapel pins to create more fandom for the little insects and to honour Pearson for his unparalleled work on the species. This event was organised by Sanjay Molur and team, South Asian Invertebrate Specialist Group (SAsISG), based at Zoo Outreach Organisation (Zooreach).
There are 241 species in India, making our country the third highest in the world. These include the thin brush tiger beetle and ringed brush tiger beetle (pictured), both of which are found in Meghalaya and are endangered.
They are both small, measuring around 1cm and are found in south east and south west Meghalaya respectively.
To understand more about what is happening to the tiger beetles, SAsISG conducted IUCN Red List Assessment workshop in May 2024, where researchers across India, working on tiger beetles came together. They assessed 122 species endemic to India. The exercise tentatively assessed 46 percent of the species threatened with extinction. Plantations, mining, tourism, and urbanization were the major threats for this group.
One of the recommendations of the workshop was to create more awareness and interest in this lesser-known group of insects. So, by celebrating this day every year, we hope to build respect, nurture, and conserve the six-legged tigers. Tiger beetles are top-predators of the insect world and they play crucial roles in managing other insect populations, and maintaining ecosystem balance.
