Hercules beetle

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Hercules beetle
Male Hercules beetle, Dynastes hercules.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Coleoptera
Family:
Scarabaeidae
Subfamily:
Dynastinae
Genus:
Dynastes
Species:
D. hercules
Binomial name
Dynastes hercules

The Hercules beetle (Dynastes hercules) is the most famous and largest of the rhinoceros beetles. It is native to the rainforests of Central America, South America, and the Lesser Antilles. The beetle has also been observed as far north as Southern Arizona, in the county of Pima. Their title is well deserved, with some able to lift almost 850 times their own weight and some males, rarely, can reach 17 cm (6.75 inches) in length. It is the largest of the 6 species in the Dynastes genus, and one of the largest beetles known, being exceeded in length by only two other beetles in the family Cerambycidae, Macrodontia cervicornis (specimens of 17–17.5 cm are known) and Titanus giganteus (also up to 17–17.5 cm; several 18+ cm specimens are reputed/alleged to exist). However, if the horns are excluded, both Macrodontia Cervicornis and Dynastes Hercules drop considerably farther down in the size rankings, leaving the titan beetle on top. One reason for this is that the development of the horns is allometric, as well as sexually dimorphic, and thus not strictly correlated to actual body size; it is possible for a female to be much longer, measured from eyes to abdomen, than a male, yet be considered "smaller" simply due to the absence of horns.

Female
Larva

As noted above, Hercules beetles are highly sexually dimorphic, with the females generally being larger-bodied but much shorter, as they lack horns entirely. The larval stage of the Hercules beetle will last one to two years, with the larva growing up to 4.5 inches (11 cm) in length and weighing up to 120 grams (0.26 lbs). Much of the life of the larva is spent tunneling through its primary food source of rotting wood. After the larval period, transformation into a pupa, and molting, the beetle then emerges as an adult. Adults will roam the forest floor in search of decaying fruit.

Subspecies

  • Dynastes hercules baudrii Pinchon, 1976
    • Origin: Martinique
    • Male size: 50–100 mm; female: 45–55 mm
  • Dynastes hercules bleuzeni Silvestre and Dechambre, 1995
    • Origin: Venezuela
    • Male size: 55–155 mm; female: 45–75 mm
  • Dynastes hercules ecuatorianus Ohaus, 1913
    • Origin: Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Brazil
    • Male size: 55–165 mm; female: 50–80 mm
Hercules Dynastes hercules. Male
  • Dynastes hercules hercules Linnaeus, 1753.
    • Origin: Guadeloupe, Dominica
    • Male size: 45–178 (max: 220 mm?); female: 50–80 mm
Dynastes hercules lichyi. Male from Peru (144mm)
  • Dynastes hercules septentrionalis
    • Origin: Extreme Southern Mexico, Central America
    • Male size: 50–150 mm; female: 40–80 mm
  • Dynastes hercules tuxtlaensis Moron, 1993
    • Origin: Mexico
    • Male size: 70–110 mm; female: 45–60 mm

See also

References

Further reading

External links

Wikispecies has information related to Dynastes hercules.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dynastes hercules.
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