Xylotrupes gideon

Xylotrupes gideon
Xylotrupes gideon, dorsal view
Xylotrupes gideon, lateral view
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Scarabaeidae
Subfamily: Dynastinae
Genus: Xylotrupes
Species: X. gideon
Binomial name
Xylotrupes gideon
(Linnaeus, 1767)
Synonyms
  • Scarabaeus gideon Linnaeus, 1767

The brown rhinoceros beetle or fighting beetle, Xylotrupes gideon, is a species of large scarab beetle belonging to the subfamily Dynastinae. It is particularly known for its role in insect fighting in Thailand.

Subspecies

[1][2]

Distribution

This species can be found across much of Southeast Asia, south to Australia and east to the Solomon Islands.[3]

Description

Xylotrupes gideon, male and female. Museum specimen

Xylotrupes gideon can reach a length of 3.5–7 centimetres (1.4–2.8 in).[4] As usual with horn beetles there is a great difference between the genders. Males are larger than females. They have two chitinous bifurcated horns, a thick thoracic horn and a smaller cephalic horn, which they use to eliminate their rivals during the mating period.[4] These beetles are shiny dark red, dark brown, or black in coloration. The eyes are located on each side of the head. When disturbed these beetles make a hissing noise, produced by rubbing the tip of the abdomen against the edge the elytra.[5]

The larvae develop in decaying vegetable matter and take usually two years in development, the adult beetles live 2–4 months. A female can lay about 20-30 eggs but it depends on the place where they lived .[6]2-

Beetle fighting

These beetles are used for staging beetle fights, a traditional entertainment popular in the northern region of Thailand. They are captured and trained by their owners to become stronger and more aggressive.[7] In the fight the beetle that lifts its opponent up by its horns wins. A bug may also win if his opponent walks away, falls or is overturned.[8] Insect fighting is mostly practiced in the Chiang Mai and Nan provinces of Thailand. It is also popular in Myanmar and Northern Laos. Spectators usually place bets on the fights.[9] Insect coaches claim that their activity provides a free pastime while drawing attention upon insects that would otherwise have been ignored or just killed as pests.[10]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Biolib
  2. ↑ Catalogue of life
  3. ↑ Australian Faunal Directory Archived April 2, 2015, at the Wayback Machine.
  4. 1 2 Natural World
  5. ↑ "Xylotrupes gideon (Rhinoceros beetle) - JCU". Retrieved 2009-08-29.
  6. ↑ Brisbane Insects
  7. ↑ Bangkok Post - Beetle fighting revival Archived December 10, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  8. ↑ A travel experience: Rhinoceros beetles in Thailand's combat arena
  9. ↑ Beetle fighting Archived February 16, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
  10. ↑ Chiang Mai (Northern Thailand) Tourist Guide
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