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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Beetles (Coleoptera) » Polyphaga » 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 · Food · Life Cycle · Print References · Internet References · Works Cited

Eastern Hercules Beetle - Dynastes tityus - female

Eastern Hercules Beetle babies - Dynastes tityus

Grant's Hercules Beetle - Dynastes grantii - male

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Coleoptera (Beetles)

Suborder Polyphaga

Superfamily Scarabaeoidea

Family Scarabaeidae (Scarab Beetles)

Subfamily Dynastinae (Rhinoceros Beetles)

Tribe Dynastini

Genus Dynastes (Hercules Beetles)

Other Common Names

Unicorn Beetles

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

Dynastes MacLeay, 1819. Synonyms, etc.:

=Theogenes Burmeister 1847

listed as Dynastes Kirby, 1825 in some sources

Explanation of Names

Latin from Greek dunastes (δυναστης) 'lord, ruler'(1)

Numbers

2 spp. in our area, 8 spp. total(2)

Size

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

Identification

Huge, robust beetles. Males with prominent horns.

Range

temperate NA to the Neotropics; in our area, most of the US(2)

Habitat

Forests. Adults are nocturnal and come to lights.

Food

larvae feed on rotting wood, adults are frugivores (some have been observed eating tree sap)(2)

Life Cycle

2-3 years(2)

Print References

Ritcher's (1966) key to separating larvae:

Claws bearing 2 setae (Fig. 332) --- Dynastes

Claws bearing 3 or 4 setae (Figs. 333 and 334) --- Strategus (3)

Internet References

Info on D. granti

Info on D. hercules (West Indies and Central America), the largest member of the genus

Works Cited

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

2.	Generic Guide to New World Scarab Beetles (by Brett Ratcliffe and Mary Liz Jameson)

3.	White Grubs and Their Allies, a Study of North American Scarabaeoid Larvae Paul O. Ritcher. 1966. Oregon State University Press, Corvallis. 219 pp.

Contributed by Cotinis on 21 March, 2004 - 10:30pm
Additional contributions by Phillip Harpootlian, Mike Quinn, v belov
Last updated 5 September, 2019 - 4:34pm

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