Hercules beetle
Scientific name: Dynastes hercules hercules
Country: Martinique , Saint Lucia, Dominican Republic, Guadaloupe, Venezuela, Costa Rica
Continent: Central and North America, South America
Diet: Adults - rotting fruit, larvae - rotting wood, leaf litter
Food & feeding: Herbivore
Habitats: Tropical rainforest
Conservation status: Not listed by IUCN (Conservation Union)
Relatives: stag beetle, dung beetle
Description: The males and females are very different in appearance and for a long time people thought that the two sexes were different species. The males are smooth and shiny with wing cases that are a beautiful olive-green colour with large black spots. Their huge horn grows from the thorax and extends forward in a large curve over the head. The front of their head also has a horn pointing forward and curving upward which has several sturdy notches on it. These horns can make up more than half the body length of the beetles. The females don't have horns and instead have beaded wing cases covered in a thick layer of reddish hairs. Males may be up to 17 cm in length.
Lifestyle: Much of the lifecycle of a Hercules beetle is spent as a larva, tunneling through and eating rotten wood. The adults roam the forest undergrowth looking for ripe and decaying fruit to feed on.
Family & friends: The horns of the males are used in combat over access to females and food sources. The females, lacking the horns, do not fight.
Growing up: Eggs are laid in soil. The hatched larvae will go through several moults, growing and feeding on rotting wood, growing to a huge size. Their soft, fleshy bodies are cream in colour and only their head and mouthparts are hardened and black in colour. After two or three years, the larvae moult into pupae and then emerge as adults.
This is the world's largest beetle, but despite the fearsome appearance of the male's horns they are harmless to humans. The male beetles use them as levers, jousting with opponents to gain access to females or food.
Conservation news: Hercules beetles are vulnerable in the wild due to destruction of forests and collection for the pet trade. They are also vulnerable as their natural range is very limited.
Bristol Zoo Gardens is breeding the impressive Hercules beetle. The successful emergence of adults has been a result of persistent efforts by the animal staff since the first generation arrived at the Zoo in 1999.
