Adults are roughly 15–20 mm long.
Fine-art photographic collection
Pseudoxycheila bipustulata
A high-Andean tiger beetle that defends sunlit territories above 1,800 metres and is recognised by two blazing elytral spots.
About this species
Pseudoxycheila bipustulata(Latreille, 1811)
Information reviewed15 July 2026
Pseudoxycheila bipustulata is a widespread Andean tiger beetle. Adults inhabit high-elevation open ground, paths and slopes, where they run, fly short distances and defend favourable sunlit hunting sites.
Taxonomy
Animalia · Arthropoda · Insecta · Coleoptera · Carabidae · Cicindelinae · Pseudoxycheila
Accepted taxon. · checked 2026-07-15
Andes from Venezuela and Colombia south through Ecuador and PeruBroad range and selected reference localities — not a complete occurrence map.
Andes from Venezuela and Colombia south through Ecuador and Peru
Montane paths, open slopes and disturbed highland ground, often above 1,800 m.
Diurnal and territorial in sunshine.
Small arthropods.
Solitary.
What makes this species remarkable?
Behavioural observations above 1,800 metres documented adults occupying and defending high-mountain patches, making the species a territorial predator in an environment of cold nights and intense solar heating.
It is one of the most geographically widespread tiger beetles in Colombia, recorded from twenty departments despite being tied primarily to Andean terrain.
Two large pale-orange spots blaze against the dark elytra, a pattern so conspicuous that the species can switch from ground camouflage at rest to a broken warning-like flash in motion.
Sources and scientific references
- GBIF — taxon record/search for Pseudoxycheila bipustulata
- Catalogue of Life — taxon search for Pseudoxycheila bipustulata
- Behaviour and high-elevation habitat study from Nevado del Ruiz
- Colombian distribution synthesis noting records from twenty departments
- CABI record for diurnal activity and territorial behaviour