With over 2300 species of tiger beetles, the diversity in their coloration, behavior, and ability to thrive in varying environments has led many scientists to analyze more about their background, history, taxonomy, and ecological relationships with other organisms.

Another point of curiosity is how physically similar tiger beetles can exhibit completely different behaviors and cope with drastically dissimilar ecological conditions.

In the mid 19th century, Carolus Linnaeus, a Swedish biologist and physician known as the father of modern taxonomy, formally named the first tiger beetle species.

Several physical distinctions regarding the tiger beetle include their elongated jaws with teeth on the inner side, general long body shape ranging from 5mm to 4 cm, and thin legs used for running across a variety of surfaces.

Tracing fossil data about the species, it's evident that they were alive from about 250 million years ago and are now found throughout regions worldwide with exception to Antarctica.

These correlations are likely due to the fact that body size can have a significant effect on the amount of energy an organism needs to acquire and consumes, as well as potential for them to experience predation and parasitism.

Saline bodies of water are the most common habitat for Australian tiger beetles as they form a sort of haven for the insects which are surrounded by vast, arid deserts that cannot energetically support them.

[2] Rivacindela as a genus is endemic to the Australian Eyrean region and its isolated evolution in this area gave the species its propensity for high speeds which have been shown to increase at higher surface temperatures.

[9] Although a developmental period is not yet clearly described for this species due to its recent discovery, it can be inferred to be anywhere from 9 to 29 days when following the general trends of the family Cicindelinae.

[6] They reside in burrows that range in ecological conditions; some are located in flatter land masses; others include clay banks or even a pile of rotting leaves.

[11] At this stage of its life, the Rivacindela hudsoni hunts using an ambush method of attack as it lies in wait for its arthropod prey to move in range of its mandibles.

[10] Once the prey is in range, the larvae extends its body out of the burrow, grabs the organism with its mandibles and drags it back into the tunnel where it proceeds to kill and eat it.

Studies showed that low feeding levels can create significant implications on tiger beetle development, more specifically for larvae.

Furthermore, the consequences of these low feeding levels can manifest as a domino effect and extend to later stages throughout the life cycle, which result in underdeveloped pupae and adults.

[3] These segments include the head, abdomen, and a patterned thorax onto which six thin, uniramous appendages and two pairs of vestigial wings are attached.

[11] Surrounding the mouth is the labrum, onto which sharp projections and maxillae are attached next to a pair of sickle-like mandibles with both compound and simple teeth arranged along its length.

[13] This is because the beetle cannot gather enough photons that reflect its prey to form an image of it, resulting in a stop-start mode of hunting made affordable by its high speeds.

[13] As a predator living in dry, saline environments, the R. hudsoni eats almost anything it can capture such as other beetles, caterpillars and ants while also taking advantage of other, larger meals as scavengers.

[11] Once he has sufficiently decreased the distance between himself and his target, he will leap onto the female's back, grabbing her thorax with his mandibles and her wings with his front two sets of legs.

[11] Due to the R. hudsoni's habitat being hot and dry, they rely on high resting metabolic rates to maintain optimal body temperatures at all times.

[11] This, combined with the length ratio of their femur and tibia, and the slender nature of the beetle's legs is what allows them to run so quickly across substrates.

[4] While many of their specific internal structures have not been studied thoroughly, scientists have compiled a decent amount of research on tiger beetles' digestive and nervous system.

[16] Out of the total of 30 tiger beetle species out of the Rivacindela subgenus, nine have displayed flightless behavior due to their incompletely developed and abnormally small wings.

[4] In addition, flight can be a crucial aspect in thermoregulation: beetles can cool their body to prevent overheating and also find basking sites.

Tiger beetles have interesting visual processing and image perception due to their small, flat, simple structured eyes.

[4][10] Internally, the family Cicindelinae approach thermoregulation convectively as they "stilt" on their legs to optimize the positioning of their body above a higher heat boundary.

[11] As carnivores, tiger beetles lack the complex digestive system herbivore insects need to break down cellulose and extract/absorb plant nutrients.

[14] Some studies have indicated that there is a possibility of extra-oral digestion in Cicindelinae, which would mean they regurgitate gut enzymes to break down food further in their mouths before it continues through to the foregut.

[15] The eighth and ninth sections of a female's abdomen are combined to form a telescopic ovipositor which she uses to deposit her eggs in a substrate once fertilized.

Since the majority of the species are earthbound, adult tiger beetles sprint in small bursts and occasionally slow down or stop because they run so fast to the point they can't clearly pinpoint prey.