Xylotrupes gideon


The brown rhinoceros beetle, Xylotrupes gideon is a brilliant species of large scarab beetle belonging to the subfamily Dynastinae. They are commonly used in beetle fights in Asia, where large sums of money are betted on their outcome.

Subspecies

This species is widespread in Indonesia: Java, Borneo, Sunda Islands and Moluccas.

Description

Xylotrupes gideon can reach a length of. As usual with rhinoceros 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. 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.
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. 2-