The titan beetle (''Titanus giganteus'') is a
Neotropical longhorn beetle, the sole species in the genus ''Titanus'', and one of the largest known
beetles.
Description
The titan beetle is one of the largest beetles, with the largest reliable measured specimen being in length,
comparable to such beetles as ''
Xixuthrus heros'' () and the Hercules beetle, ''
Dynastes hercules'', in which giant males occasionally can grow up to ,
[Ratcliffe BC, Cave RD. 2015. The dynastine scarab beetles of the West Indies (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Dynastinae). Bulletin of the University of Nebraska State Museum 28: l-346.] but the Hercules beetle males have an enormous horn on the pronotum or
thorax making up around half of its total length. As such, the body of the Titan beetle is considerably larger than that of the Hercules beetles. The short, curved and sharp
mandibles are known to snap pencils in half and cut into human flesh.
[Zahl, P. A. (1959): Giant insects of the Amazon. Natl. Geogr. Mag. 115 (5): 632-669.] Adult titan beetles do not feed, searching instead for mates via pheromones while in flight.
The larvae have never been found, but are thought to feed inside wood and may take several years to reach full size before they pupate. These beetles are also thought to feed on decaying wood below the ground. Boreholes thought to be created by titan beetle larvae seem to fit a grub over two inches wide and perhaps as much as one foot long. A famous "life-sized" photograph of a putative larva of this beetle appeared in ''
National Geographic
''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...
'' magazine, filling an entire page,
[ but it turned out to be of a different species of beetle, possibly '']Macrodontia cervicornis
Male, Beauchêne disarticulation, MHNT
''Macrodontia cervicornis'' (Linnaeus, 1758), also known as the sabertooth longhorn beetle, is one of the largest beetles, if one allows for the enormous mandibles of the males, from which it derives bot ...
''.
The adults defend themselves by hissing in warning and biting, and have sharp spines, as well as strong jaws. The adult beetles central nervous system structure shown that the cephalic ganglion is composed of the central brain and optic lobes that connect to the sub esophageal ganglion (SOG). This is a common structure for diurnal insects. The size of the size sensory integration were larger complex eyes that have structured large optic and antennal lobes.[
]
Distribution
It is known from the rain forests of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, the Guianas
The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories:
* French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France
* ...
, and north-central Brazil.
Gallery
File:Titanus giganteus specimens.jpg, ''Titanus giganteus'' beetles for sale at international meeting of entomologists in Prague
File:Titanus giganteus MHNT dos.jpg, ''Titanus giganteus'' male
File:Cerambycidae - Titanus giganteus-001.JPG, ''Titanus giganteus'' at the Montréal Insectarium
The Montreal Insectarium (french: link=no, Insectarium de Montréal) is a natural history museum located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, featuring a large quantity of insects from all around the world. It is the largest insect museum in North America ...
File:Titan beetle (Titanus giganteus) found by Jean NICOLAS (10331669783).jpg
See also
* 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
External links
*
*
''Titanus giganteus'' pictures at Bio-Foto.com
Video clip of the Titan beetle from Life in the Undergrowth
Giant beetle visits Oxford University
BBC news article with photograph
BBC article which covers the beetle's grubs
*https://www.kidsdiscover.com/quick-reads/34551/
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q858284, from2=Q12092818
Prioninae
Beetles described in 1771
Beetles of South America
Arthropods of Colombia
Arthropods of South America
Fauna of French Guiana
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus