Heavy-metal-bioaccumulation
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Cicindelidia haemorrhagica
Wetsalts Tiger Beetle
Cicindelidia haemorrhagica is a tiger beetle species notable for its ability to inhabit extreme thermal environments. In Yellowstone National Park, it is exclusively associated with hot springs ranging from pH 2.7 to 9.0 and temperatures from 29.1 to 75.0°C, where it functions as the apex invertebrate predator. The species exhibits remarkable thermal tolerance, with adults observed on substrates exceeding 50°C and showing minimal behavioral thermoregulation compared to populations in milder habitats. Outside Yellowstone, it occurs in wet salt lakes, ponds, rivers, and tidal flats across the western United States.
Cicindelidia haemorrhagica haemorrhagica
Wetsalts Tiger Beetle
Cicindelidia haemorrhagica haemorrhagica is a subspecies of tiger beetle known for its remarkable tolerance of extreme thermal environments. Populations in Yellowstone National Park inhabit hot springs with water temperatures exceeding 70°C (158°F) and pH ranging from highly acidic (2.7) to strongly alkaline (~9), making them among the most thermally tolerant insects known. The subspecies exhibits unique physiological and behavioral adaptations that allow it to function as an apex predator in these extreme habitats, including heat-reflective ventral plates and an apparent lack of cooling behaviors despite high ambient temperatures.