Stag beetle
Stag beetle Temporal range:
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A male specimen ofLamprima aurata,otherwise known as thegolden stag beetle | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Coleoptera |
Suborder: | Polyphaga |
Infraorder: | Scarabaeiformia |
Superfamily: | Scarabaeoidea |
Family: | Lucanidae Latreille,1804 |
Subfamilies | |
Stag beetlesare a family of about 1,200 species ofbeetlesin the familyLucanidae,currently classified in four subfamilies.[1]Some species grow to over12 centimetres (4+1⁄2inches), but most to about 5 cm (2 in).
Overview
[edit]TheEnglishname is derived from the large and distinctivemandiblesfound on the males of most species, which resemble theantlersofstags.
A well-known species in much ofEuropeisLucanus cervus,referred to in some European countries (including theUnited Kingdom) asthestag beetle; it is the largest terrestrial insect in Europe.Pliny the Eldernoted thatNigidiuscalled the beetlelucanusafter the Italian region ofLucaniawhere they were used as amulets. The scientific name ofLucanus cervusaddscervus,deer.
Male stag beetles are known for their oversize mandibles used to wrestle each other for favoured mating sites in a way thatparallelsthe waystagsfight 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 between the two males, 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 are very slow, and typically feel the need to 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.
Thelarvaefeed 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 survivinggrubsof larger species, such asProsopocoilus 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 withrhinoceros beetles,stag beetles are often bought as pets inSouth KoreaandJapan.[5][6]
Evolution
[edit]The oldest known fossil of the group isJuraesalusfrom the late Middle Jurassic (Callovian)Daohugou Bedsof Inner Mongolia, China. While initially interpreted as a member of Aesalinae, it was later interpreted to be a basal member of the family.[7]Litholamprima,the only genus in the subfamily Litholampriminae, is known from the Lower Cretaceous ofYixian Formation,China.[8]
Antler allometry
[edit]The Lucanidae males have large antlers. Their size often varies among individuals. Such variation is termed a scaling relationship or staticallometry.Environmental conditions and genetic factors affect antler size.[9]
References
[edit]- ^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.
- ^: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
- ^"How to help stag beetles"(PDF).wildlondon.org.uk.London Wildlife Trust. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on February 2, 2017.RetrievedMay 7,2017.
- ^Cowan, Frank (December 15, 2012)."Curious Facts in the History of Insects; Including Spiders and Scorpions, by Frank Cowan—A Project Gutenberg eBook".gutenberg.org.Retrieved2022-03-16.
- ^"[남상호 자연 다큐/곤충 세계 여행④]곤충도 '황금알'을 낳는다".시사저널(in Korean). 2001-09-28.Retrieved2020-07-26.
- ^Lombardi, Linda (26 May 2014)."How to Care for Your Beetle".tofugu.Archived fromthe originalon 6 March 2018.Retrieved5 March2018.
- ^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.PMID25732069.
- ^G.V. Nikolajev, D. Ren (2015)."A new fossil Lucanidae subfamily (Coleoptera) from the Mesozoic of China"(PDF).Caucasian Entomological Bulletin(in Russian).11(11): 15-18.doi:10.23885/1814-3326-2015-11-1-15-18.Archived(PDF)from the original on February 27, 2024.
- ^Kawano, Kazuo (1 March 2006)."Sexual Dimorphism and the Making of Oversized Male Characters in Beetles (Coleoptera)".Annals of the Entomological Society of America.99(2): 327–341.doi:10.1603/0013-8746(2006)099[0327:SDATMO]2.0.CO;2.
External links
[edit]- Data related toLucanidaeat Wikispecies
- Media related toLucanidaeat Wikimedia Commons
- FlickrImages
- Stag beetle infoResearch site containing much information on the stag beetle as well as information on current conservation schemes.
- M.J. Paulsen."Annotated Checklist of the New World Lucanidae".Archived fromthe originalon 2012-02-07.Retrieved2007-09-14.Checklist of New World stag beetles with links to pages with additional information and images.
- Toma Libich."Goliathus: gallery of Lucanidae".
- "Gallery of Lucanidae".Archived fromthe originalon 2006-10-20.
- J M Maes."Biodiversity: section on Lucanidae with a world catalogue and a world bibliography".
- AsahinetStag beetles on postage stamps and species illustrations.
- Lucanes du MondeImage rich French blog
- TOLArchived2008-09-16 at theWayback Machine
- UNLGeneric Guide to New World Scarabs- Lucanidae,