Goliathus
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The Goliath beetles (named after the biblical giant
Goliath Goliath ( ) ''Goləyāṯ''; ar, جُليات ''Ǧulyāt'' (Christian term) or (Quranic term). is a character in the Book of Samuel, described as a Philistine giant In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: ''gigas'', cognate giga-) a ...
) are any of the five species in the genus ''Goliathus''. Goliath beetles are among the largest insects on Earth, if measured in terms of size, bulk and weight.''Goliathus'' - The African Goliath Beetles
/ref>Karl Meye

/ref> They are members of subfamily Cetoniinae, within the family Scarabaeidae. Goliath beetles can be found in many of
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
's tropical forests, where they feed primarily on
tree sap 01 or '01 may refer to: * The year 2001, or any year ending with 01 * The month of January * 1 (number) Music * 01'' (Richard Müller album), 2001 * ''01'' (Son of Dave album), 2000 * ''01'' (Urban Zakapa album), 2011 * ''O1'' (Hiroyuki Sawa ...
and fruit. Little appears to be known of the larval cycle in the wild, but in captivity, ''Goliathus'' beetles have been successfully reared from egg to adult using protein-rich foods such as commercial cat and dog food. Goliath beetles measure from for males and for females, as adults, and can reach weights of up to in 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 ...
l stage, though the adults are only about half this weight. The females range from a dark chestnut brown to silky white, but the males are normally brown/white/black or black/white.


Species

There are six species of Goliath beetles, with several different subspecies and forms only partially described: *''
Goliathus albosignatus } ''Goliathus albosignatus'' is a species of beetle of the family Scarabaeidae, described by Boheman in 1857. It is one of several species of Goliath beetles that inhabit Africa, but it is the only one exclusively found in subtropical sections of ...
'' Boheman, 1857 *''
Goliathus cacicus ''Goliathus cacicus'', the chief goliath, is a species of beetles of the family Scarabaeidae. Description ''Goliathus cacicus'' can reach a length of in males, of in females. The presence of sexual dichromatism in this species of beetle can be ...
'' (Olivier, 1789) *''
Goliathus goliatus ''Goliathus goliatus'' is a species of beetles of the family Scarabaeidae. Description ''Goliathus goliatus'' is one of the largest species in the genus ''Goliathus'', males having a body length of and females having a body length of . The pr ...
'' ( Linnaeus, 1771) *''
Goliathus kolbei ''Goliathus kolbei'' is one of the Goliath beetles, placed in the genus ''Goliathus'', and the sole member of its own subgenus, ''Argyrophegges'' (sometimes misspelled as ''Argyropheges', which has historically sometimes been treated as a separa ...
'' (Kraatz, 1895) *''
Goliathus orientalis ''Goliathus orientalis'' is a species of beetles belonging to the family Scarabaeidae. Subspecies * ''G. orientalis orientalis'' Moser, 1909 * ''G. orientalis usambarensis'' Preiss, 1933 Description ''Goliathus orientalis'' is one of the large ...
'' Moser, 1909Beetles Space - Goliathus orientalis
/ref> *''
Goliathus regius ''Goliathus regius'', the Royal Goliath beetle, is a species of beetles of the family Scarabaeidae.Klug J.C.F (1835) Verzeichniss von Thieren und Pflanzen, welche auf einer Reise um die Erde gesammelt wurden von A.Erman. V.Insekten (Coleoptera), ...
'' Klug, 1835


Life cycle

''Goliathus'' larvae are somewhat unusual among cetoniine scarabs in that they have a greater need for high-
protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...
foods than do those of most other genera. Pellets of dry or soft dog or cat food (buried in the rearing substrate on a regular schedule) provide a suitable diet for ''Goliathus'' larvae in captivity. However, a substrate of somewhat moistened, decayed leaves and wood should still be provided in order to create a suitable medium for larval growth. The young stage larvae (1st instar) will eat some of this material. Even under optimum conditions, the larvae take a number of months to mature fully because of the great size they attain. They are capable of growing up to in length and reaching weights in excess of . When maximum size is reached, the larva constructs a rather thin-walled, hardened cell of sandy soil in which it will undergo pupation and metamorphose to the adult state. Once building of this cocoon is completed, the larva transforms to the
pupa A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...
l stage, which is an intermediate phase between the larval and adult stages. During the pupal duration, the insect's tissues are broken down and re-organized into the form of the adult beetle. Once metamorphosis is complete, the insect sheds its pupal skin and undergoes a period of hibernation as an adult beetle until the dry season ends. When the rains begin, the beetle breaks open its cocoon, locates a mate, and the entire life cycle starts over again. The adult beetles feed on materials rich in
sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or double ...
, especially tree
sap Sap is a fluid transported in xylem cells (vessel elements or tracheids) or phloem sieve tube elements of a plant. These cells transport water and nutrients throughout the plant. Sap is distinct from latex, resin, or cell sap; it is a separa ...
and fruit. Under captive conditions, adults can sometimes live for about a year after emerging from their pupal cells. Longevity in the wild is likely to be shorter on average due to factors such as predators and weather. The adult phase concentrates solely on reproduction, and once this function is performed, the time of the adult beetle is limited, as is true for the vast majority of other insect species.


Description

The bulky bodies of Goliath beetles are composed of a thick
chitin Chitin ( C8 H13 O5 N)n ( ) is a long-chain polymer of ''N''-acetylglucosamine, an amide derivative of glucose. Chitin is probably the second most abundant polysaccharide in nature (behind only cellulose); an estimated 1 billion tons of chit ...
ous
exoskeleton An exoskeleton (from Greek ''éxō'' "outer" and ''skeletós'' "skeleton") is an external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to an internal skeleton (endoskeleton) in for example, a human. In usage, some of the ...
, which protects their organs and hindwings. Like most beetles, they possess reinforced
forewings Insect wings are adult outgrowths of the insect exoskeleton that enable insects to fly. They are found on the second and third thoracic segments (the mesothorax and metathorax), and the two pairs are often referred to as the forewings and hindwin ...
(called elytra) that act as protective covers for their hindwings and abdomen. Only the hindwings (which are large and membranous) are actually used for flying. When not in use, they are kept completely folded beneath the elytra. Each of the beetle's
legs A leg is a weight-bearing and locomotive anatomical structure, usually having a columnar shape. During locomotion, legs function as "extensible struts". The combination of movements at all joints can be modeled as a single, linear element ...
ends in a pair of sharp claws, which provide a strong grip useful for climbing on tree trunks and branches. Males have a Y-shaped
horn Horn most often refers to: *Horn (acoustic), a conical or bell shaped aperture used to guide sound ** Horn (instrument), collective name for tube-shaped wind musical instruments *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various ...
on the head, which is used as a pry bar in battles with other males over feeding sites or mates. Females lack horns and instead have a wedge-shaped head that assists in burrowing when they lay eggs. In addition to their massive size, Goliath beetles are strikingly patterned; prominent markings common to all of the ''Goliathus'' species are the sharply contrasting black vertical stripes on the pronotum (thoracic shield), while the various species may be most reliably distinguished based on their distinctive mix of elytral colors and patterns.


See also

*
Insect fighting Insect fighting is a range of competitive sporting activity, commonly associated with gambling, in which insects are pitted against each other. Background Forms of insect-fighting as spectator sport are practiced in regions of China, Japan, ...
*
List of largest insects Insects, which are a type of arthropod, are the most numerous group of multicellular organisms on the planet, with over a million species identified so far. The title of heaviest insect in the world has many contenders, the most frequently crowne ...


References

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q492946 Cetoniinae