Polposipus herculeanus, the Frégate Island giant tenebrionid beetle or Frégate beetle, is a flightless species of beetle in family Tenebrionidae. It is endemic to Frégate Island in the Seychelles.[2] It grows to be about 20–30 mm long and has a hard, rounded abdomen covered with tubercles. There appears to be no sexual dimorphism. They are largely arboreal, sheltering under the bark of trees, beneath the crooks of branches, and within bushes during the day.[2] They are believed to be nocturnal, descending to the forest floor at night, though never travelling far. This behaviour may help them to avoid predators such as the Wright's Skink and the Seychelles magpie-robin.[2] When in danger, chemicals will secrete from the defensive glands in the posterior of the beetle, which have a musky smell and stains the skin purple. In captivity they have been noted to eat a variety of fruits, vegetables, bark, fungus and cat food.[2] There are a few captive populations, taken for conservation reasons, the largest being at London zoo. These populations are the descendants of two small populations taken from the wild several years apart. It is quite possible that it previously lived on other islands in the Seychelles, and it has been suggested that it could be reintroduced to other islands to reduce its vulnerability.[2] In captivity they have been recorded to live for up to seven years.[2]
^Gerlach, J. (2014). "Polposipus herculeanus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2014: e.T17902A21425713. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-1.RLTS.T17902A21425713.en. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
^ abcdefFerguson, Amanda; Pearce-Kelly, Paul (2004). "Management guidelines for the welfare of zoo animals: The Frégate Island giant tenebrionid beetle Polposipus herculeanus". The Federation of Zoological Gardens of Great Britain and Ireland. ISSN 0963-1712.
Sourcesedit
Images
Nature Seychelles 2005. Giant Tenebrionid Beetle. Downloaded on 10 October 2009.
Amanda Ferguson & Paul Pearce-Kelly (2004). Management guidelines for the welfare of zoo animals: The Frégate Island giant tenebrionid beetle Polposipus herculeanus
This Tenebrionidae-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
polposipus, herculeanus, frégate, island, giant, tenebrionid, beetle, frégate, beetle, flightless, species, beetle, family, tenebrionidae, endemic, frégate, island, seychelles, grows, about, long, hard, rounded, abdomen, covered, with, tubercles, there, appear. Polposipus herculeanus the Fregate Island giant tenebrionid beetle or Fregate beetle is a flightless species of beetle in family Tenebrionidae It is endemic to Fregate Island in the Seychelles 2 It grows to be about 20 30 mm long and has a hard rounded abdomen covered with tubercles There appears to be no sexual dimorphism They are largely arboreal sheltering under the bark of trees beneath the crooks of branches and within bushes during the day 2 They are believed to be nocturnal descending to the forest floor at night though never travelling far This behaviour may help them to avoid predators such as the Wright s Skink and the Seychelles magpie robin 2 When in danger chemicals will secrete from the defensive glands in the posterior of the beetle which have a musky smell and stains the skin purple In captivity they have been noted to eat a variety of fruits vegetables bark fungus and cat food 2 There are a few captive populations taken for conservation reasons the largest being at London zoo These populations are the descendants of two small populations taken from the wild several years apart It is quite possible that it previously lived on other islands in the Seychelles and it has been suggested that it could be reintroduced to other islands to reduce its vulnerability 2 In captivity they have been recorded to live for up to seven years 2 Polposipus herculeanus Conservation status Vulnerable IUCN 3 1 1 Scientific classification Kingdom Animalia Phylum Arthropoda Class Insecta Order Coleoptera Family Tenebrionidae Genus Polposipus Species P herculeanus Binomial name Polposipus herculeanusSolier 1848References edit Gerlach J 2014 Polposipus herculeanus IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2014 e T17902A21425713 doi 10 2305 IUCN UK 2014 1 RLTS T17902A21425713 en Retrieved 16 November 2021 a b c d e f Ferguson Amanda Pearce Kelly Paul 2004 Management guidelines for the welfare of zoo animals The Fregate Island giant tenebrionid beetle Polposipus herculeanus The Federation of Zoological Gardens of Great Britain and Ireland ISSN 0963 1712 Sources editARKive Images Nature Seychelles 2005 Giant Tenebrionid Beetle Downloaded on 10 October 2009 Amanda Ferguson amp Paul Pearce Kelly 2004 Management guidelines for the welfare of zoo animals The Fregate Island giant tenebrionid beetle Polposipus herculeanus nbsp This Tenebrionidae related article is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Polposipus herculeanus amp oldid 1190716285, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
