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Thread: Happy Stag Beetle day

  1. #1

    Happy Stag Beetle day

    Guess it must have been stag beetle day yesterday.

    Always loved stag beetles as a kid, fascinating looking things. There used to be loads round our way. Great memories of finding them on the school playing field, putting 2 males together and watching them having a wrestle.

    The house we used to live in had a huge population living under the lawn and one day every summer, holes would appear all over the lawn and the sky would be filled with them, sounded like a lancaster bomber fly by. There were some old long dead rotten trees long the front of the lawn when we moved in, covered in ivy. When my dad, with help from a 7 or 8 year old me, eventually got round to ripping them out a couple of years after we moved in, we found the source of all the stags, all around the rotten roots were hundreds of big fat juicy witchetty grub type larvae, we filled the holes back in but not sure if they made it, we never got as many or any hatching from our garden after that.

    Walking back from the corner shop last night, walked past the old house and saw 5 or 6 of the things flying around above me, really ridiculous flying things, totally vertical, eyes pointed straight up to the sky with no idea where they're going. One flew into my face, then bounced off a lampost, another was just repeatedly flying into a street sign. They do make me laugh.

    Happy stag beetle day everyone, look after them, they're getting rare

  2. #2
    Craftsman RogertheDodger's Avatar
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    Our largest beetle in the UK. Working as a landscape gardener, I come across these all the time at this time of year.



    This is a female....they have much smaller, but more powerful jaws.

  3. #3
    Master AM94's Avatar
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    Stag beetles are superb looking insects and, unfortunately, I rarely see them these days.

    I wish I knew when May Bug day was, because seeing them always puts a smile on my face as well (especially when in flight and they dive bomb you)



  4. #4
    Several years ago we used to get loads, but I suspect the tidying up of gardens (including mine) has had a devastating effect on the local population as I rarely see them now

  5. #5
    One of the strangest places I've ever visited was in Mitaka, outside Tokyo (where Studio Ghibli is based). It was a museum devoted to Stag Beetles.

    As a zoologist, or rather a pair of zoologists, we were instantly drawn to it, so on the way back from the Ghibli Museum, we popped in. It's basically the ground floor of Suwa-san's house, from what I could work out: you had to remove your shoes to enter, if I recall correctly.

    Suwa Lucanidae Museum by Noodlefish, on Flickr

    Stag beetle by Noodlefish, on Flickr

    Dorsus hopei by Noodlefish, on Flickr

  6. #6
    Grand Master Neil.C's Avatar
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    Lovely stuff.

    I saw a Stag Beetle the other day, it raises the spirits doesn't it?
    Cheers,
    Neil.

    My Speedmaster website:

    http://www.freewebs.com/neil271052

  7. #7
    Craftsman RogertheDodger's Avatar
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    Another Cockchafer (Maybug) pic...this is the male with the venetian blind like antennae.

  8. #8
    Grand Master number2's Avatar
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    As a confirmed forager I'm dismayed at never having seen either of these in the wild,,,boohoo

  9. #9
    Craftsman RogertheDodger's Avatar
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    This is the larva of the Cockchafer (the Stag beetle larva is more or less the same but slightly bigger, and found in decaying wood) and feeds on grass/plant roots. It's not uncommon to dig them up while turning the soil over. The row of circles along its flank are called 'spiracles' and are how the creature breathes. They are connected to the respiratory system. All insects breathe like this.

  10. #10
    Grand Master
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    As a new garden owner I am loving the pics!, have just been googling hedgehog poo as it seems we are lucky enough to have one visit us
    Would like a few beetles to visit as well.

    mike

  11. #11
    Craftsman
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    Funtastic pics!!!


    Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app

  12. #12
    Craftsman RogertheDodger's Avatar
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    As an entomologist, this thread is right up my street. I don't want to highjack the thread, but I have lots of pics of other fascinating insects.....praying mantises, cicadas, butterflies, moths, etc. If you wanna see, just ask....
    This guy is one of my favourites....a really agressive little Praying Mantis going into full combat mode. (Taken in Portugal about 3 years ago)
    Here he is just landed, attracted to the bright patio light.

    Looks pretty innocent, don't he?

    Then......whoa......WTF........


    Plenty more if you want 'em........

  13. #13
    Grand Master Neil.C's Avatar
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    ^^^

    Great mantis pics, my youngest son used to breed them.

    He also hatched out some Painted Lady butterflies as well.

    Love to see butterflies in the garden, spotted a couple of Brimstones yesterday.

    Fascinating subject.
    Cheers,
    Neil.

    My Speedmaster website:

    http://www.freewebs.com/neil271052

  14. #14
    Craftsman JeppeRober's Avatar
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    Amazing pictures! Would love to see more.

  15. #15
    Grand Master JasonM's Avatar
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    Love these pictures, Manis are so sinister.

  16. #16
    Grand Master Neil.C's Avatar
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    Found a pic of a Death's Head hawk moth my youngest son hatched.

    Quite large!

    Cheers,
    Neil.

    My Speedmaster website:

    http://www.freewebs.com/neil271052

  17. #17
    Craftsman RogertheDodger's Avatar
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    Wow! Love that Deaths Head Hawk moth...a very rare visitor to the UK. This is a larger green Mantis, found on holiday in Menorca.



    These pics are of Cicadas in Portugal...the first showing why they are so hard to spot. They are very well camouflaged...



    This last pic is a little video to hear the sound the Cicadas make....hope it works, just click on it to activate.

  18. #18
    Grand Master Neil.C's Avatar
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    That green mantis is huge!
    Cheers,
    Neil.

    My Speedmaster website:

    http://www.freewebs.com/neil271052

  19. #19
    Craftsman RogertheDodger's Avatar
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    Going back to beetles, this is the beautiful Rose Chafer, quite a common beetle in the UK...not huge, about 3/4" or 19mm long. I love the iridescent green and bronze colours.



  20. #20
    Craftsman
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    The pics are really great!!



    Sent from my iPhone using TZ-UK mobile app

  21. #21
    Grand Master Neil.C's Avatar
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    I love this sort of stuff.
    Cheers,
    Neil.

    My Speedmaster website:

    http://www.freewebs.com/neil271052

  22. #22
    Master steptoe's Avatar
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    My back garden backs into Wimbledon common and we get lots of Stag beetles in the garden.

    I'm always rescuing them as they struggle to fly over the house hit the wall or windows and fall to the ground and struggle getting off their backs before the ants arrive and severe the legs and carve them up to carry away..

    Here's a Cockchafer from a couple of weeks ago. Usually outnumbered by Stag beetles.


  23. #23
    Craftsman RogertheDodger's Avatar
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    A few more...first some of our own, the Dor or Dung beetle. Lovely iridescent blue underneath...



    and a colony of Ladybirds that had hibernated inside a sun umbrella...found these when we opend it up! Several different types here.




    ...and some from Portugal. The first is a large 'weevil' like beetle..


    A Rhinoceros beetle...


    Not sure what this one is, but it was big...

  24. #24
    Grand Master Neil.C's Avatar
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    Those ladybirds!

    My son found a similar lot behind the curtain pelmet in his bedroom.

    When I was a kid I only remember the red ones with a spot on each half but there seems to be all sorts of varieties about now.
    Cheers,
    Neil.

    My Speedmaster website:

    http://www.freewebs.com/neil271052

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