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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Beetles (Coleoptera) » Water, Rove, Scarab, Longhorn, Leaf and Snout Beetles (Polyphaga) » Scarab, Stag and Bess Beetles (Scarabaeoidea) » Scarab Beetles (Scarabaeidae) » Rhinoceros Beetles (Dynastinae) » Dynastini » Hercules Beetles (Dynastes)

Genus Dynastes - Hercules Beetles

Classification · Other Common Names · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Life Cycle · Print References · Internet References · Works Cited

Large And In Charge - Dynastes tityus - male

Strange bugs in East Tennessee (aliens maybe lol) - Dynastes tityus

Help With Huge, Smelly Beetle! - Dynastes tityus

Western Hurcules Beetle - Dynastes granti

Eastern Hercules Beetle - Dynastes tityus - male

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Coleoptera (Beetles)

Suborder Polyphaga (Water, Rove, Scarab, Longhorn, Leaf and Snout Beetles)

Superfamily Scarabaeoidea (Scarab, Stag and Bess Beetles)

Family Scarabaeidae (Scarab Beetles)

Subfamily Dynastinae (Rhinoceros Beetles)

Tribe Dynastini

Genus Dynastes (Hercules Beetles)

Other Common Names

Unicorn Beetles

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

Theogenes Burmeister, 1847

Explanation of Names

Author of genus is MacLeay, 1819 [not Kirby, 1825 as is often cited]

Dynastes is Latin, originally from Greek dunastes (δυναστης), lord or ruler (1).

Numbers

There are two species in temperate North America: D tityus (Eastern Hercules Beetle), and D. granti (Southwestern Hercules Beetle)--Nearctica.com and Arnett (2).

Size

40-140 mm (latter including tropical members of genus)

Identification

Huge, robust beetles. Males with prominent horns.

Range

New world tropics, into temperate North America.

Habitat

Forests

Life Cycle

Larvae bore in rotting wood. Adults of Dynastes are nocturnal and are attracted to lights.

Print References

The Century Dictionary--entry for Dynastes (1)

Internet References

The Genus is summarized here.

This page describes D. granti:

page at http://www.naturalworlds.org/

This page on

West Indian Dynastinae discusses D. hercules, the largest in the genus, length up to 140 mm. It is found in parts of the West Indes and Central America.

Works Cited

1.	The Century Dictionary: an encyclopedic lexicon of the English language

2.	American Insects: A Handbook of the Insects of America North of Mexico By Ross H. Arnett

Contributed by Cotinis on 21 March, 2004 - 10:30pm
Additional contributions by Phillip Harpootlian
Last updated 4 September, 2008 - 3:12pm

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