Stag beetle

Last updated

Stag beetle
Temporal range: Middle Jurassic–Recent
Golden stag beetle.jpg
A male specimen of Lamprima aurata , otherwise known as the golden stagbeetle
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Suborder: Polyphaga
Infraorder: Scarabaeiformia
Superfamily: Scarabaeoidea
Family: Lucanidae
Latreille, 1804
Subfamilies

Aesalinae
Lampriminae
Lucaninae
Syndesinae

Stag beetles are a family of about 1,200 species of beetles in the family Lucanidae, currently classified in four subfamilies. [1] Some species grow to over 12 centimetres (4+1⁄2 inches), but most to about 5 cm (2 in).

Contents

Overview

Dorcus curvidens male (left) and female (right) Dorcus curvidens hopei sjh.jpg
Dorcus curvidens male (left) and female (right)
Paralissotes sp. illustrated by Des Helmore COLE Lucanidae Lissotes.png
Paralissotes sp. illustrated by Des Helmore

The English name is derived from the large and distinctive mandibles found on the males of most species, which resemble the antlers of stags.

A well-known species in much of Europe is Lucanus cervus , referred to in some European countries (including the United Kingdom) as the stag beetle; it is the largest terrestrial insect in Europe. Pliny the Elder noted that Nigidius called the beetle lucanus after the Italian region of Lucania where they were used as amulets. The scientific name of Lucanus cervus adds cervus, deer.

Male stag beetles are known for their oversize mandibles used to wrestle each other for favoured mating sites in a way that parallels the way stags fight over females. Fights may also be over food, such as tree sap and decaying fruits. Despite their often fearsome appearance, they are not normally aggressive to humans. During a battle the main objective is to dislodge its opponent's tarsal claws with its mandible, thus disrupting their balance. Because its mandibles are capable of exceeding its own body size, stag beetles are generally inefficient runners, and typically fly from one location to another. [2]

Female stag beetles are usually smaller than the males, with smaller mandibles that are much more powerful than the males'. [3] As larvae, females are distinguished by their cream-coloured, fat ovaries visible through the skin around two-thirds of the way down their back.

The larvae feed for several years on rotting wood, growing through three larval stages until eventually pupating inside a pupal cell constructed from surrounding wood pieces and soil particles. In the final larval stage, "L3", the surviving grubs of larger species, such as Prosopocoilus giraffa , may be the size of a human finger.

In England’s New Forest, it was once believed that the stag beetle, dubbed the “devil’s imp,” was sent to do some evil to the corn crops. The superstition led to stoning the insects on sight, as observed by a writer in the Notes and Queries. [4] Along with rhinoceros beetles, stag beetles are often bought as pets in South Korea and Japan. [5] [6]

Evolution

The oldest known fossil of the group is Juraesalus from the late Middle Jurassic (Callovian) Daohugou Beds of Inner Mongolia, China. While initially interpreted as a member of Aesalinae, it was later interpreted to be a basal member of the family. [7]

Antler allometry

Antler allometry in Prosopocoilus savagei Metopodontus savagei-Musee royal de l'Afrique centrale.jpg
Antler allometry in Prosopocoilus savagei

The Lucanidae have (male-only) antlers. Their size often varies among individuals. Such variation is termed a scaling relationship or static allometry. Environmental conditions of development affect antler size, but genetic factors are active.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beetle</span> Order of insects

Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera, in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 described species, is the largest of all orders, constituting almost 40% of described insects and 25% of all known animal species; new species are discovered frequently, with estimates suggesting that there are between 0.9 and 2.1 million total species. Found in almost every habitat except the sea and the polar regions, they interact with their ecosystems in several ways: beetles often feed on plants and fungi, break down animal and plant debris, and eat other invertebrates. Some species are serious agricultural pests, such as the Colorado potato beetle, while others such as Coccinellidae eat aphids, scale insects, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects that damage crops.

<i>Lucanus cervus</i> Species of beetle

Lucanus cervus, known as the European stag beetle, or the greater stag beetle, is one of the best-known species of stag beetle in Western Europe, and is the eponymous example of the genus. L. cervus is listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN Red List.

<i>Dorcus titanus</i> Giant stag beetle of the family Lucanidae

Dorcus titanus is a beetle of the family Lucanidae. It was described by Jean Baptiste Boisduval in 1835. Huang and Chen (2013) separated Serognathus from Dorcus by representing morphological characters and DNA analysis.

<i>Lucanus capreolus</i> Species of beetle

Lucanus capreolus, the reddish-brown stag beetle, is a beetle of the family Lucanidae. The specific name capreolus is derived from Latin, meaning "roe deer". The name refers to the resemblance of the mandibles to deer antlers.

<i>Lucanus elaphus</i> Species of beetle

Lucanus elaphus, the giant stag beetle, is a beetle of the family Lucanidae native to eastern North America. They are sometimes kept as pets.

<i>Lucanus formosanus</i> Species of beetle

Lucanus formosanus is a stag beetle which is endemic to Taiwan, and grows to a length of 45–80 millimetres (1.8–3.1 in). Like other species in the Lucanid family, L. formosanus exhibits distinct sexual dimorphism and subsequent external morphological allometry in males. Males of the species develop mandibles of various forms depending on geographic location; i.e. northern, central, and southern morphs.

<i>Odontolabis cuvera</i> Species of beetle

Odontolabis cuvera, the golden stag beetle, is a beetle of the family Lucanidae, stag beetles.

<i>Chiasognathus grantii</i> Species of beetle

Chiasognathus grantii is a species of stag beetle found in Argentina and Chile. It is known as Darwin's beetle, Grant's stag beetle, or the Chilean stag beetle.

<i>Cyclommatus metallifer</i> Species of beetle

Cyclommatus metallifer is a species of stag beetle in the family Lucanidae. There is sexual dimorphism within the species. Males are generally larger in size and have enlarged mandibles. It is named for its metallic coloration, which ranges in color and may be varying levels of black, brown, or gold. This species is notably easy to maintain, making it a useful species for scientific study. Additionally, it has been kept as an exotic pet.

<i>Cyclommatus</i> Genus of beetles

Cyclommatus is a genus of the family Lucanidae, also known as the stag beetle. The majority of the species from the genus Cyclommatus are located in Southeast Asia, though some species are found in China and Taiwan as well. The genus Cyclommatus also consists of three subgenera: Cyclommatus, Cyclommatinus and Cyclommatellus. Each subgenera contains 80, 24 and 3 species respectively. In total, the genus Cyclommatus consists of a total of 134 species, though more are still being discovered to this day.

<i>Hexarthrius parryi</i> Species of beetle

Hexarthrius parryi, the fighting giant stag beetle, is a species of large stag beetles. It belongs to the genus Hexarthrius of the tribe Lucanini. It is classified under the subfamily Lucaninae of the stag beetle family Lucanidae.

<i>Lucanus laminifer</i> Species of beetle

Lucanus laminifer is a species of beetles of the family Lucanidae.

<i>Paralissotes reticulatus</i> Species of beetle

Paralissotes reticulatus, also called the New Zealand reticulate stag beetle, is a native species of stag beetle from New Zealand. Although they do have wings they are flightless.

<i>Geodorcus helmsi</i> Species of beetle

Geodorcus helmsi,New Zealand giant stag beetle or Helms's stag beetle is a large, slow-moving, flightless stag beetle in the family Lucanidae. It is endemic to New Zealand.

<i>Dorcus rectus</i> Species of beetle

Dorcus rectus, the little stag beetle, is a species of beetles in the family Lucanidae. It can be found in China(Liaoning), Korea, Japan, Taiwan and Russia. These beetles have a distinctive red shell that separates them from Dorcus curvidens. Males of this species have been observed to have mandible trimorphism, a characteristic that has only been described in two species of Lucanidae—with the other one being Odontolabis cuvera—"and a small number of other invertebrates" as of 2017. The mandibles are used by males as weapons.

<i>Geodorcus capito</i> Species of beetle

Geodorcus capito is a large flightless species of stag beetle in the family Lucanidae. It is endemic to the Chatham Islands in New Zealand.

<i>Geodorcus alsobius</i> Species of beetle

Geodorcus alsobius, or Moehau stag beetle, is a large flightless species of stag beetle in the family Lucanidae. It is found only on Mt Moehau, the highest mountain in the Moehau Range on the Coromandel Peninsula in New Zealand.

<i>Geodorcus sororum</i> Species of beetle

Geodorcus sororum is a large flightless species of stag beetle in the family Lucanidae. It was discovered in 1973 by Mr. A. Wright on an expedition to Middle Sister Island/Te Awanui, one of The Sisters Islands/Rangitatahi which are part of the Chatham Islands in New Zealand. This holotype specimen is held in the New Zealand Arthropod Collection. It was first described by Beverley Holloway in 2007. The name sororum is translated from Latin to mean "belonging to the sisters".

Lucanus datunensis is a species of stag beetle endemic to the Tatun Mountain of Taiwan's Yangmingshan.It is first discovered in 1984. It is the smallest stag beetle in Taiwan and is an endangered species threatened by recent human activity.

<i>Aegus chelifer</i> Species of beetle

Aegus chelifer, is a species of stag beetle found in Indo-Malaya regional countries.

References

  1. ↑ Smith, A.B.T. (2006). A review of the family-group names for the superfamily Scarabaeoidea (Coleoptera) with corrections to nomenclature and a current classification. The Coleopterists Bulletin 60:144–204.
  2. ↑
    Goyens J, Van Wassenbergh
    S, Dirckx J, Aerts P. 2015 Cost of flight and the evolution of stag beetle weaponry. J. R. Soc. Interface 12: 20150222. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2015.0222
  3. ↑ "How to help stag beetles" (PDF). wildlondon.org.uk. London Wildlife Trust. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 2, 2017. Retrieved May 7, 2017.
  4. ↑ Cowan, Frank (December 15, 2012). "Curious Facts in the History of Insects; Including Spiders and Scorpions, by Frank Cowan—A Project Gutenberg eBook". www.gutenberg.org. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
  5. ↑ "[남상호 자연 다큐/곤충 세계 여행④]곤충도 '황금알'을 낳는다". 시사저널 (in Korean). 2001-09-28. Retrieved 2020-07-26.
  6. ↑ Lombardi, Linda (26 May 2014). "How to Care for Your Beetle". tofugu.com. Archived from the original on 6 March 2018. Retrieved 5 March 2018.
  7. ↑ Kim, Sang Il; Farrell, Brian D. (May 2015). "Phylogeny of world stag beetles (Coleoptera: Lucanidae) reveals a Gondwanan origin of Darwin's stag beetle". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 86: 35–48. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2015.02.015. PMID   25732069.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.