Brown stag beetle
Ryssonotus nebulosus
The brown stag beetle is a stag beetle from Australia. Stag beetles are known for their big jaws, which can look a bit like a deer's antlers. This one is a one-of-a-kind beetle with no very close cousins.
Lives in
Eastern Australia, and now also New Zealand
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. If you pick it up it might pinch a little with its jaws, so it is better to just watch.
What does it eat?
Like other stag beetles, its babies grow up inside rotting wood and eat it.
How fast is it?
A garden snail about 0.05 km/h (0.03 mph)
A tortoise about 0.3 km/h (0.19 mph)
Brown stag beetle about 0.4 km/h (0.25 mph)
A person walking about 5 km/h (3.1 mph)
cool stuff
Fun facts
1
It is the only species in its genus, so it has no very close relatives.
2
People often spell its scientific name wrong, as Rhyssonotus with an extra h.
3
It lives in Queensland and New South Wales, and people have brought it to New Zealand.
you asked
Most asked questions about Brown stag beetle
?Where does the brown stag beetle live?
In Queensland and New South Wales in Australia, and in New Zealand where it was brought.
?Is the brown stag beetle dangerous?
No. It may pinch a little if you hold it, but it is harmless.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Ryssonotus nebulosus
- Group
- Beetles
- Family
- Lucanidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Coleoptera > Lucanidae
- Lives on
- Australia and Oceania
Where the facts come from
- Ryssonotus (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Desmond W. Helmore. CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
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