The Miami tiger beetle was placed on the Federal list of threatened and endangered species as endangered in 2016. In September, 2021, the Service proposed designating critical habitat for the beetle. The proposal is to designate approximately 1,977 acres as critical habitat for the species in Miami-Dade County, Florida. A draft economic analysis (DEA) is also available for the proposed designation.
After a public hearing and a comment period that ended in December, 2021, a final decision is pending.
The species is found outside the boundaries of Everglades National Park on the pine rocklands of the Miami Rock Ridge in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The Miami tiger beetle is known to occur in two populations separated by urban development that are within 3.1 miles (5 kilometers) of each other. Based upon available information from survey data, it appears that the species occurs in a very limited range. Surveys and observations conducted at Long Pine Key in Everglades National Park have found no Miami tiger beetles, and habitat conditions there are considered unsuitable for the species.
More information on the proposal, including the draft economic analysis, is available by going to the Federal eRulemaking Portal, https://www.regulations.gov/docket/FWS-R4-ES-2021-0053/document.
