Stag beetle

Images of undisturbed subjects in their natural environment. All subject types.

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Oleg
Posts: 44
Joined: Thu Feb 08, 2018 9:02 am
Location: Kursk.Russia

Stag beetle

Post by Oleg »

Stag beetle. Russia
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ChrisR
Site Admin
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Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 3:58 am
Location: Near London, UK

Post by ChrisR »

Nice find!. These look alive - ? Sadly I only ever see dead ones.
Chris R

Oleg
Posts: 44
Joined: Thu Feb 08, 2018 9:02 am
Location: Kursk.Russia

Post by Oleg »

ChrisR wrote:Nice find!. These look alive - ? Sadly I only ever see dead ones.
Hi, Chris Thanks!
They're fine, they are absolutely alive :)
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Chris S.
Site Admin
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Joined: Sun Apr 05, 2009 9:55 pm
Location: Ohio, USA

Post by Chris S. »

Oleg--really interesting shots. Are the stag beetles interacting at all--displaying, fighting? Did you find them in such close proximity, or place them there?

Did you learn anything of their behavior by watching them?

Otlichno, i ochen moledyetz!

--Chris S.

Oleg
Posts: 44
Joined: Thu Feb 08, 2018 9:02 am
Location: Kursk.Russia

Post by Oleg »

Chris S. wrote:Oleg--really interesting shots. Are the stag beetles interacting at all--displaying, fighting? Did you find them in such close proximity, or place them there?

Did you learn anything of their behavior by watching them?

Otlichno, i ochen moledyetz!

--Chris S.
Hello Chris,
THANKS, place them there :) They live in the forest, where there are a lot of old trees. I saw those bugs for the first time in my life. now I am very interested to know about them, I saw three bugs
Image :)

MarkSturtevant
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Location: Michigan, U.S.A.
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Post by MarkSturtevant »

Beautiful!
So in case this is of any use: Stag beetle larvae grow in dead wood. Of that I know little, but I suspect they are mainly subsisting on fungi in the wood, and different species have preferences for certain species of host trees.
The large mandibles of the males are used for 'combat' with other males. They defend a dead tree from rival males, and the male that can do so is more likely to mate with a female that wants to lay eggs in that tree. Their combat generally results in no harm to the loser. They are simply picked up and tossed off the tree.
Mark Sturtevant
Dept. of Still Waters

Oleg
Posts: 44
Joined: Thu Feb 08, 2018 9:02 am
Location: Kursk.Russia

Post by Oleg »

MarkSturtevant wrote:Beautiful!
So in case this is of any use: Stag beetle larvae grow in dead wood. Of that I know little, but I suspect they are mainly subsisting on fungi in the wood, and different species have preferences for certain species of host trees.
The large mandibles of the males are used for 'combat' with other males. They defend a dead tree from rival males, and the male that can do so is more likely to mate with a female that wants to lay eggs in that tree. Their combat generally results in no harm to the loser. They are simply picked up and tossed off the tree.
Thanks,Mark! :)

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