''Lissotes latidens'', commonly known as the Wielangta stag beetle or broad-toothed stag beetle, is a species of
stag beetle
Stag beetles are a family of about 1,200 species of beetles in the family Lucanidae, currently classified in four subfamilies.Smith, A.B.T. (2006). A review of the family-group names for the superfamily Scarabaeoidea (Coleoptera) with corrections ...
which is only found in an area centred in
Wielangta Forest
The Wielangta forest is in south-east Tasmania, Australia. It is notable for its role in a 2006 court case that called into question the effectiveness of Australia's cooperative Commonwealth-State forest management regime known as Regional Fores ...
in eastern
Tasmania
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, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
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. It is one of the rarest animals in Australia.
The broad-toothed stag beetle has been recorded at less than 40 sites, scattered across an area of , since it was first discovered in 1871. It lives and breeds in moist decaying wood underneath logs on the ground. It has no wings, and it is likely that it moves no further than tens of metres throughout its life. Stag beetles are an ancient lineage thought to have evolved with the dinosaurs over 200 million years ago. In a 2006 study some 121 logs were rolled, only 2 broad-toothed stag beetles were observed, out of a total of some 106 beetles. It is threatened by bulldozing and burning, because this disturbs leaf litter and logs, removes old trees and dries out the forest by removal of the canopy. It was listed as a threatened species on 3 December 2002.
References
Lucaninae
Beetles of Australia
Beetles described in 1871
{{Lucanidae-stub