I was able to visit some new beach habitat and went searching for wildlife. Here are the insects that I encountered in the beachy scrub and out along the shores of the Outer Banks, North Carolina.
These dragonflies were plentiful and this individual was kind enough to let me get close. It is a Four-spotted Pennant (Brachymesia gravida) and you can see the four spots on its wings that are its namesake.
I noticed this tiny little fly. It is a colorful fly in the Fruit Fly family. Genus Paracantha. Notice the intricate patterning on the wing and striped eyes.
There was the constant buzzing of cicadas everywhere I walked. Whenever you walked up to the bush where the noise was coming from the noise abruptly stopped as if the bugs saw you coming to find them. I was able to find this cicada out in the open on a stalk of grass. Somebody was able to ID it as an Atlantic Saltmarsh Cicada (Diceroprocta viridifascia) which makes sense given the it was near a saltmarsh habitat.
This little bee was a new one for me as well. It is a type of Cuckoo Leafcutter Bee (Coelioxys slossoni ssp. slossoni)
Here is a Ghost Crab out during the day. They are usually nocturnal but there were a few scurrying around. Not an insect but part of the arthropod gang!
A grasshopper, genus Orphulella.
A tiny robber fly out on the open white sands. Genus Laphystia.
Finally, a new species of Tiger Beetle that is only found along clean and undisturbed beaches on the Atlantic coast. It is called the Eastern Beach Tiger Beetle (Habroscelimorpha dorsalis) and some of its subspecies are federally listed as threatened in the United States.
This white beetle is specifically adapted to blend into the white sands of beaches. Its markings on the elytra are quite handsome and I was stoked to find these guys running around the beach.
Thank you for reading. All photos are my own.
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STOPYou have a very rich variety of fauna on the beach!
Beautiful and varied post. :) Enjoyed very much watching insects and crabs different from the ones that live here in my area.
The markings on the Eastern Beach Tiger Beetle were quite intriguing.
Its so amazing seeing such close photos of such tiny beings!!! Thank you for the post!