InsectNet forum

Love these (as I have 8 of them/2 flying).

My largest example measures in at 12.5 cm.
One of the prides of my collection !

My largest M. acteon comes in at 12.4 cm.

Another Spectacular Giant Cerambycid - Telotoma hayesi endemic to Sao Tome, Principe Isl. - Unfortunately I hesitated years ago & never managed to acquire such a nice (any at all!) large specimen!

T. hayesi male, 109mm



John K.

O'h yeah,

Always a grand species that never sells on the cheap !

One of the "Giant" beetles I first acquired decades ago, as a teenager, was Ctenoscelis coeus; it was cheap ($10-15.00 USD) & was a commonly offered sp. at that time...I think it is rarely offered these days? Following is another closely related sp. that I see more recently (last 10-15 years).

Ctenoscelis ater, 111mm - Peru
Another Giant (Rare?) Cerambycid from Peru - male Orthomegas frischiseini, 101mm


John K.

You know when Chalcosoma, Eupatorus or other giant beetles are flying to the sheet, they make a lot of noise flying! They also disturb all the moths you are trying to look at! I used to do this when I was young.

Adam.

Giant male Xixuthrus microceros - Buru Isl., 130mm


Another Giant Cerambycid - a VERY RARE X. domingensis - 96mm - $2,300.00 USD!

My only example of this species..... and one I chose to spread "out" a little more than usual to show off its size.

Telotoma hayesi 124mm

(Not Mine!) Incredible collection of 28 specimens (big & small) of Titanus giganteus...


(Not Mine!... old online photo) Big (148mm) & small (92mm)... I do, however, have a smaller 88mm T. g. - John K.


John K.

What difference in regards of size within one species!
Mine is 111mm so I suppose I could call it medium size

I saw a Titanus while collecting in French Guiana that measured 21.45 cm after drying. Many, likely most, specimens of insects are never measured and documented for public forums, publication, etc.

21.45cm is 8-1/2 inches! Maybe the guy who described the 9" Titanus was not exaggerating. Mike, what happened to the Titanus you observed?

Hi 58chevy,

"Maybe the guy who described the 9" Titanus was not exaggerating"... this comes from the Rev. J. G. Wood in his all encompassing book "Insects Abroad". This is a really interesting old book with many beautiful B. & W. engravings. I have a nice 1892 copy. In his book (pg. 231) the Rev. Wood says, "The first family of the Longicornes is the Prionidae, in which are comprised some of the giants of the insect race, one, indeed, being the largest insect in existence, measuring nine inches in length, and being very wide and thick of body (interestingly, the Rev. never mentioned it by name, but was referring, of course, to T. giganteus - John K.)... further... "I should very much have liked to have it engraved, but it is so large that by no possibility could space be found for it, even if a whole page were given up for it." His book measures 5" x 9" & has 780 pages. I would highly recommend finding a copy of this book if you are interested in great, historic works on insects.

Hi MIKELOCKE34,

Re: the unheard of 21.45cm (8.5") T. giganteus... like the Fox Mulder poster on the X-Files, "I want to believe..." ; only a good photo (of actual specimen) with accurate measurement will suffice for me... would be truly incredible if true!

John K.

There are no verified photos for the claim of the 16.5cm Xixuthrus heros specimen.
The largest verified specimen is a 14.5cm male at a European museum
I can believe this species and X.terribilis reaching 15cm or a little bit more but 16.5cm seems highly dubious to me
Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, as the saying goes