Tropical Flat Bark Tiger Beetle vs Mariana Eight-spot Butterfly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Tropical Flat Bark Tiger Beetle Mariana Eight-spot Butterfly
Scientific Name Tricondyla aptera Hypolimnas octocula marianensis
Order Coleoptera Lepidoptera
Family Carabidae Nymphalidae
Size 12-18 mm 5-7 cm wingspan
Habitat Forests Forests
Diet Predators Herbivores
Regions Southeast Asia (Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia) United States
Conservation Least Concern Endangered

Tropical Flat Bark Tiger Beetle

A bizarre, ant-like tiger beetle with an extremely elongated body, narrow waist, and long legs. It hunts on tree bark in Southeast Asian rainforests and is completely flightless.

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Did You Know?

Its ant-like body shape with a constricted waist is thought to be Batesian mimicry of large ants, allowing it to approach ant prey without being recognized as a predator.

Mariana Eight-spot Butterfly

A butterfly subspecies endemic to the Mariana Islands in the western Pacific. It has suffered from habitat destruction and invasive species.

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Did You Know?

The brown tree snake, an invasive predator, has devastated many native species on Guam including this butterfly.