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Fast Insects, Smart Science: Tiger Beetles Rule episode artwork

Nov 2, 2025 34 min

Fast Insects, Smart Science: Tiger Beetles Rule

from Ask A Biologist Podcast Hosted by Dr. Biology Talks with biologist David Pearson about tiger beetles

Tune in and get turned on to the world of tiger beetles! Dr. Biology chats with biologist David Pearson about these colorful sprinters that are not only fun to watch but also important “bioindicators” that help scientists understand the health of habitats. You’ll discover how tiger beetles inspire new designs through biomimicry, and why these tiny speedsters now have their very own celebration—World Tiger Beetle Day, November 11. If you have not already, please subscribe to the podcast so you can be notified about new episodes.

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Fast Insects, Smart Science: Tiger Beetles Rule

0:00 34:31

Chapters

  1. 0:00 Intro - Old Radio Broadcast
  2. 2:35 David Person - tiger beetle expert
  3. 3:20 Where you find tiger beetles
  4. 3:59 Tiger beetles as hunters (tiger beetle stew)
  5. 4:42 How fast are tiger beetles?
  6. 5:24 Blindingly fast...so to speak
  7. 6:02 Bioindecators
  8. 10:56 World Tiger Beetle Day
  9. 13:40 Tiger beetle guide to North America
  10. 14:09 Tiger Beetle Zoom Gallery (see them up close)
  11. 14:55 How to start hunting for tiger beetles
  12. 17:37 Distinctive running and flying patterns
  13. 18:37 Food web
  14. 19:57 What do they eat?
  15. 21:55 Colors, patterns, signals, and mimics
  16. 22:56 Learning from tiger beetles - extremophiles and biomimicry
  17. 26:20 Three questions
  18. 26:50 When did you know you wanted to be a scientist?
  19. 28:56 What would you be if you were not a biologist?
  20. 30:02 What to do for World Tiger Beetle Day
  21. 32:15 How to capture images of tiger beetles
  22. 33:42 Sign-off - Learn more

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This episode is 34 minutes long.

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This episode was published on November 2, 2025.

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