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Stag Beetle
Stag Beetle Facts
| Kingdom: Five groups that classify all living things | Animalia |
| Phylum: A group of animals within the animal kingdom | Arthropoda |
| Class: A group of animals within a pylum | Insecta |
| Order: A group of animals within a class | Coleoptera |
| Family: A group of animals within an order | Lucanidae |
| Common Name: Most widely used name for this species | Stag Beetle |
| Scientific Name: The name of the animal in science | Lucanidae |
| Location: The place where something is found | Europe |
| Diet: What kind of foods the animal eats | Omnivore |
| Size (L): How long (L) or tall (H) the animal is | 5cm - 12cm (2in - 4.8in) |
| Number Of Species: The total number of recorded species | 1,200 |
| Average Lifespan: The average time the animal lives for | 3 - 5 months |
| Conservation Status: The likelihood of the animal becoming extinct | Threatened |
| Colour: The colour of the animal's coat or markings | Black, Brown, Green, Blue, White, Yellow |
| Skin Type: The protective layer of the animal | Shell |
| Favourite Food: The preferred food of this animal | Decaying wood |
| Habitat: The specific area where the animal lives | Deciduous woodland |
| Average Litter Size: The average number of babies born at once | 100 |
| Main Prey: The food that the animal gains energy from | Decaying wood, Nectar, Leaves |
| Predators: Other animals that hunt and eat the animal | Bats, Rats, Birds |
| Distinctive Features: Characteristics unique to this animal | Hard, armoured shell and large pincers |
Stag Beetle Location
Map of Europe
Stag Beetle
A stag beetle is one of more than 1,200 different species of beetle that are natively found in Europe. The stag beetle is the largest species of insect to be found in the United Kingdom, but despite this, the stag beetle is becoming rarer and rarer in much of Britain and is now a protected species in much of its historic range.
The stag beetle is primarily found inhabiting deciduous woodlands and forest across the European continent where there is an abundance of food and plenty of hiding places for this armoured insect. Stag beetle are also becoming a more common sight in parks and gardens that provide artificial replacements of their native habitats.
The stag beetle is Britain's largest and most distinctive insect as some individuals can reach more than 10cm in length. The hard, armoured shell of the stag beetle provides it's body with immense protection and is split into three parts (as with other insects) to give the stag beetle greater agility when moving around.
The most distinctive feature of the stag beetle is its long antler-like pincers which protrude from the head of the stag beetle. The pincers of the male stag beetle are often considerably larger than those of the female are primarily used for holding onto prey. Stag beetles also have wings that are protected by their shell when not being used, allowing the stag beetle to fly away if it feels threatened.
Stag beetles are omnivorous animals, but they eat a predominately vegetarian diet. Decaying wood, leaves, nectar, fruits and flowers are all stable foods in a stag beetle's diet along with smaller insects when other food sources are not as readily available.
Despite their protective body armour, stag beetles are preyed up by a wide variety of animals throughout Europe. Bats, birds, rats and other rodents are the main predators of the stag beetle along with cats and dogs, and other larger mammals such as foxes.
Stag beetles usually begin to breed when the warmer summer weather emerges, and once hatched, the stag beetle larvae remain in their infant form from a few months to a few years. The stag beetle larvae feed on rotting wood and change to nectars when they become adults. Once fully developed, adult stag beetles have a short lifespan only getting to a few months older.
Today, primarily thanks to habitat loss, the stag beetle is one of the world's threatened species and is therefore protected throughout its natural range but particularly in the UK where the stag beetle is becoming rarer and rarer.
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First Published: 26th July 2010, Last Updated: 8th November 2019
1. David Burnie, Dorling Kindersley (2008) Illustrated Encyclopedia Of Animals [Accessed at: 26 Jul 2010]
2. David Burnie, Kingfisher (2011) The Kingfisher Animal Encyclopedia [Accessed at: 01 Jan 2011]
3. Dorling Kindersley (2006) Dorling Kindersley Encyclopedia Of Animals [Accessed at: 26 Jul 2010]
4. Richard Mackay, University of California Press (2009) The Atlas Of Endangered Species [Accessed at: 26 Jul 2010]
5. Tom Jackson, Lorenz Books (2007) The World Encyclopedia Of Animals [Accessed at: 26 Jul 2010]
"I've been watching one fly around for days. My dog has been trying to ea it so I caught it. I've never seen anything like it, I didn't know beetles could fly and had pincers. I let it go after I did a quick sketch of it."
"I got a stag and a female hercules. Thanks!"
"I have heaps of them in my garden now emerging from the lawn where there was once a pear tree. They are now living/breeding beneath ground where the rotten stump is."
"amazing facts for our project! "
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