''Dorcus titanus'' is a

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 Lucanidae. It was described by

Jean Baptiste Boisduval Jean Baptiste Alphonse Déchauffour de Boisduval (24 June 1799 – 30 December 1879) was a French lepidopterist, botanist, and physician. He was one of the most celebrated lepidopterists of France, and was the co-founder of the Société entomol ...

in 1835. Huang and Chen (2013) separated ''Serognathus'' from ''Dorcus'' by representing morphological characters and DNA analysis.

Description

Males measure including mandibles; females . It has an elongated, somewhat flat body dull black with blackish antennae and legs. Male's antler-like jaws have small teeth along inner edge and a pair of big teeth toward the bottom, and are forked at end. The head of a large male reaches nearly the length of its prothorax and abdomen combined.

Life cycle

Adults can be seen from May to August. They feed on tree juice, especially of ''

Quercus An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably '' ...

'' species. Females lay eggs on the underground part of fallen oaks. The eggs hatch in about a month and the larvae feed on rotten wood. The larval period lasts about one year. The complete life cycle can last approximately from 1 to 2 years.

Distribution

This species is widely distributed in Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, India, Japan, China, Taiwan and Korea.

Habitat

It mainly inhabits tropical

rainforests Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainforest ...

and

temperate forest A temperate forest is a forest found between the tropical and boreal regions, located in the temperate zone. It is the second largest biome on our planet, covering 25% of the world's forest area, only behind the boreal forest, which covers abou ...

s from lowland to mountains.

Human uses

This beetle has some commercial value and export from some regions is criminalized. There are some Asian cultures that assign aphrodisiac properties to this insect. However, most are imported for

sport Sport pertains to any form of Competition, competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and Skill, skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to specta ...

, decorative show, or to be kept as an exotic pet. This stag beetle is also popular pet in Asia and Europe.

Gallery

File:Lucanidae - Dorcus titanus-002.JPG, Male File:Larva of Hirata-Kun.jpg, Larva File:Lucanidae - Dorcus titanus.JPG, Museum specimen File:Eurytrachelus.titanus.jpg, Mounted specimen from

Sulawesi Sulawesi (), also known as Celebes (), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's eleventh-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Mindanao and the Sulu Ar ...

(Celebes)

List of subspecies (after 2010)

Hiroshi Fujita, a Japanese collector belonged to Mushi-sha insect shop, described over 20 new subspecies of ''D. titanus'' in his book "The Lucanid Beetles of the World". His subspecies included 11 subspecies in Japan alone. Also, he divided ''D. titanus titanus'' in the

Malay Archipelago The Malay Archipelago (Indonesian/Malay: , tgl, Kapuluang Malay) is the archipelago between mainland Indochina and Australia. It has also been called the " Malay world," "Nusantara", "East Indies", Indo-Australian Archipelago, Spices Archipe ...

into ''D. titanus yasuokai'', ''D. titanus typhon'', ''D. titanus nobuyukii'' and others. Fujita's subspecies are in dispute and not widely accepted. Currently 23 subspecies are extant:Catalogue of Life: 2019 Annual Checklist
/ref> Dorcus titanus platymelus sjh

*''Dorcus titanus castanicolor'' -

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

( Tsushima),

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

(

Korean Peninsula Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

and Jeju-do),

Mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...

*''Dorcus titanus daitoensis'' -

(

Daitō Islands The are an archipelago consisting of three isolated coral islands in the Philippine Sea southeast of Okinawa. The islands have a total area of and a population of 2,107. Administratively, the whole group belongs to Shimajiri District of Okinawa ...

) *''Dorcus titanus elegans'' -

*''Dorcus titanus fafner'' -

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

*''Dorcus titanus hachijoensis'' -

*''Dorcus titanus imperialis'' -

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

*''Dorcus titanus karasuyamai'' -

*''Dorcus titanus mindanaoensis'' -

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...

*''Dorcus titanus nobuyukii'' -

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

*''Dorcus titanus okinawanus'' -

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

*''Dorcus titanus okinoerabuensis'' -

*''Dorcus titanus palawanicus'' -

( Palawan Island) *''Dorcus titanus pilifer'' -

*''Dorcus titanus platymelus'' -

*''Dorcus titanus sakishimanus'' -

( Sakishima Islands) *''Dorcus titanus sika'' -

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

*''Dorcus titanus titanus'' -

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

*''Dorcus titanus takaraensis'' -

( Takara Islands) *''Dorcus titanus tatsutai'' -

*''Dorcus titanus tokunoshimaensis'' -

*''Dorcus titanus typhon'' -

*''Dorcus titanus typhoniformis'' -

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

(

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked Provinces of China, province in Southwest China, the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is ...

) *''Dorcus titanus westermanni'' -

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

*''Dorcus titanus yasuokai'' -

(

Sumatra Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...

)

References

*Mizunuma T. & Nagai S. (1994) The Lucanid Beetles of the World. Mushi-Sha's Iconographic Series of Insects, Ed. H. Fujita, Japan. Vol. I *Huang, H. & Chen, C.-C. 2013: Stag beetles of China II

External links

Photos of ''Dorcus titanus daitoensis''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q874874 Lucaninae Beetles of Asia Beetles described in 1835 Taxa named by Jean Baptiste Boisduval