Imagine being able to run so fast that your eyesight cannot keep up! There is an insect here in the UK that actually has that capability, the green-tiger beetle.
This heathland species is a voracious predator of other insects which it can see from distance with is large, bug-like eyes. As soon as it targets its prey, it’s off running after it at around 0.5 metres per second. Now that might not sound very fast, but if you compared it to human size, it would run at over 50 metres a second!
Unfortunately, its eyesight cannot keep up with it and it has to keep stopping to relocate its prey. But this isn’t a problem as it’s so fast that it soon catches up with its unfortunate victim.
Green-tiger beetles can be found on sandy sites such as Lackford Lakes at this time of year, but spotting them might not be so easy, as the big bug eyes spot you before you spot it, and they are often seen flying away ahead of you. But if you watch to see where it lands, you might be able to creep up on it slowly.
