| Caucasus beetle | |
|---|---|
| |
| Male | |
Scientific classification
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Family: | Scarabaeidae |
| Genus: | Chalcosoma |
| Species: | C. chiron
|
| Binomial name | |
| Chalcosoma chiron (
Olivier, 1789)
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
Chalcosoma caucasus (Fabricius, 1801) [1] | |
Chalcosoma chiron (often called the Caucasus beetle) is a species of beetle in the family Scarabaeidae. This species can be found from Malaysia south into Indonesia ( Sumatra, Java, Malay Peninsula, Indochina) and Thailand in East region ( Chanthaburi province, Sa Kaeo province). [2] It was formerly known as Chalcosoma caucasus, a name which is a junior synonym and not valid. [3]
Description
Chalcosoma chiron males can reach a length of 90–130 mm (3.5–5.1 in), while females grow to 50–60 mm (2.0–2.4 in). [4] Caucasus beetles are the largest of the genus Chalcosoma and one of Asia's largest beetles. They have a striking sexual dimorphism. The male has specialised enormous, curved horns on its head and thorax that it can use to fight with other males to gain mating rights with females. A female is significantly smaller. The elytra of the females have a velvety texture, as they are covered by tiny hairs. [4] Caucasus beetles differ from Atlas beetles (for which they are often mistaken) in that they have a small tooth on their lower horns.
Their grubs go through three molts, and generally live underground for 12–15 months; the larger males remain grubs longer than females. Their pupae live 1–2 months, while the adults live for 3–5 months. Females live longer than males. [5]
Subspecies
- C. c. belangeri - Thailand, Langkawi, Vietnam
- C. c. chiron - Java
- C. c. kirbyi - West Malaysia
- C. c. janssensi - Sumatra
References
- ^ "Taxon profile: Chalcosoma chiron (Olivier, 1789)". BioLib.cz. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
- ^ Insect Life Forms
- ^ Krell, Frank-Thorsten. (2002). On nomenclature and synonymy of Old World Dynastinae (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae). Ent. Blätter 98: 37-46.
- ^ a b Natural World
- ^ The breeding manual of a Chalcosoma chiron Archived March 1, 2013, at the Wayback Machine