''Dicronorhina micans'' is a species of

beetle Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

of the family

Scarabaeidae The family Scarabaeidae, as currently defined, consists of over 30,000 species of beetles worldwide; they are often called scarabs or scarab beetles. The classification of this family has undergone significant change in recent years. Several sub ...

and subfamily

Cetoniinae Flower chafers are a group of scarab beetles, comprising the subfamily Cetoniinae. Many species are diurnal and visit flowers for pollen and nectar, or to browse on the petals. Some species also feed on fruit. The group is also called fruit an ...

. It is native to the African tropics.

Description

''Dicronorhina micans'' is the largest of its genus. It reaches about in length in the males, while the females are slightly smaller, reaching about in length. Their basic color is metallic green with a golden or bluish shade. The males have a "T"-shaped, flat horn in the forehead. The females lay their eggs in the substrate. After about two weeks the

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

e appear, that need about five months to develop, while the development of the chrysalids takes about 2 months. As the adult beetles can live approximately three months, the full life cycle will take about ten months. These beetles are active in the daytime and feed on nectar and overripe fruit.

Distribution

These beetles are mainly present in the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

, and

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...

References

Biolib

Bugdesign

External links

Cetoniinae Beetles described in 1773 Taxa named by Dru Drury {{Cetoniinae-stub