Abstract:
Purpose : Thirty-one species of arboreal tiger beetles are known from Sri Lanka of which 25 species are endemic.
However, their habitat types are poorly documented and the available records are far outdated. Therefore, a
survey of tiger beetles was carried out to determine their present occurrence with emphasis on agricultural
habitat types.
Research Method : Forty-six locations of the country, covering eighteen districts, all provinces, representing a
majority of bioclimatic zones except those in Montane Sri Lanka were surveyed for arboreal tiger beetles. Sampling
was conducted using the visual encounter method. Collected beetles were identified using taxonomic keys and
descriptions.
Findings : Eight species of arboreal tiger beetles were collected from the survey. Majority of the species
(06) were collected from crop cultivations of coconut and also from tea, fruit farms, betel leaf, cinnamon and
pepper. Four species of Derocrania and two species of Tricondyla were recorded from the cultivations and
all had fused elytra and hence unable to fly. Derocrania scitiscabra was the dominant arboreal tiger beetle
species in the crop cultivations.
Originality/ Value : The study documents hitherto unrecorded habitat types for a poorly documented
important beetle group of Sri Lanka. It further provides information for future research on the possibility of
using arboreal tiger beetles as bio-control agents of insect pests of agricultural crops.
