Lamprima latreillii

Lamprima latreillii
	Lamprima latreillii from Australia. Male on left, female on right
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Coleoptera
Family:	Lucanidae
Genus:	Lamprima
Species:	L. latreillii
Binomial name
	Lamprima latreillii; W. S. Macleay, 1819
Synonyms
	Lamprima latreillei W.S. Macleay 1819; Lamprima pygmaea W.S. Macleay 1819; Lamprima aenea Boisduval 1835; Lamprima splendens Erichson 1842; Lamprima amplicollis Thomson 1862; Lamprima fulgida Thomson 1862; Lamprima kreffti W.J. Macleay 1871; Lamprima mandibularis W.J. Macleay 1885; Lamprima sericea W.J. Macleay 1885; Lamprima violacea W.J. Macleay 1885; Lamprima nigripennis W.J. Macleay 1885;

The Golden green Stag Beetle (Lamprima latreillii) is a species of beetles in the family Lucanidae.

Description

Lamprima latreillii can reach a length of about 35mm in males. This species shows an evident sexual dimorphism. Females are smaller than the males and they look quite different. Males have the mandibles enlarged and prolonged forwards (hence the common name of Stag Beetles of the family), with orange-brown hairs in between the stags. Moreover, the colour of the males is metallic golden green or golden yellow, while females may be blue, blue-green or also dull brown. These beetles are sapro-xylophagous, feeding only on dead wood, mainly Eucalyptus species (Myrtaceae). The larvae live in rotten tree trunk.

Distribution

This species can be found in Australia, from Queensland to Victoria.

References

Biolib
Brisbane Insects
Australian Faunal Directory
Hallan, Joel Synopsis of the described Coleoptera of the World
Bio-Nica
L. latreillei at CSIRO

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