Puritan tiger beetle controversy - Essay Example

upy beach regions, has been classified as endangered species because of reduced population level of the insects as a result of development along the beaches. Therefore, legislations have been passed in order to promote preservation of Puritan Tiger Beetle in their ecosystems, something that has not been received positively by people with economic interests along the beaches. This essay will discuss the controversy surrounding the preservation of Puritan Tiger Beetle and further explain actions that should be taken to effectively preserve the insects.

To start with, the Puritan Tiger Beetles are insects with unique characteristics associated with the name of the insect. According to the Wildscreen Arkive, Puritan Tiger Beetles, whose scientific name is Cicindela puritan, are insects that prey on invertebrate organisms found along the beaches their long legs, tactics that can be associated to those used by tigers to capture their prey (n.d). The insects have brown- like color on their outermost covering and a blue-like color on their lower side (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2013).

In addition, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service states that the length of Puritan Tiger Beetles is estimated to be less than half-inch (2013). Of more concern, the distribution of Puritan Tiger Beetles is limited to only two regions namely “Chesapeake Bay in Maryland and along the Connecticut River in New England” (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2013). This signifies the extent to which the distribution of Puritan Tiger Beetle species is limited. Secondly, the Puritan Tiger Beetles represent one of the most endangered species existing on earth to date.

Entomologists from different parts of the world have demonstrated that insects are capable of inhabiting ecosystems that are distributed in different parts of the world. However, this has not been the case for the Puritan Tiger Beetles that inhabit small ecosystems found in the U.S. According to Wheeler, Maryland remains to be the