Rhinoceros Beetle

Description:

These scarabs are called Rhinoceros Beetles because of the long horn on the head of the male. There is also a prothoracic protrusion that can be small as in Picture 3 or quite large as in Picture 4. The females are usually somewhat smaller and lack both thoracic and head capsule projections. Picture 3 shows the male and female together. These beetles are large, ranging from 3 to 3.5 cm, with powerful legs with spines that can be painful when handled. They have dense red-brown hair on the underside.

Habitat:

Everywhere in the City of Oaxaca. They are attracted to lights.

Notes:

Many scarabs have horns and protrusions. When they are only on the prothorax (as in this one: http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/267...), they are fixed and cannot be moved. However, when one horn is on the head and another is on the prothorax (as in this species), the beetle can be quite flexible in using the two together for fighting. In Pictures 4 and 5, two males are facing off with each other, it is easy to see the great distance in movement that they can achieve with the head horn against the thoracic protrusion. Almost like a thumb and forefinger. In the last picture, a male had lost one of its elytra (what was once the forewing), showing how cleverly the long wing is folded beneath it. They can fold and unfold their wings so quickly that it is almost hard for the eye to catch the entire action.