A rhino beetle emerges

A female rhinoceros beetle (Chalcosoma atlas) has emerged at the butterfly house in the last week.  She has been bred up from an egg laid more than two years ago and grew into a huge grub as thick as a man's thumb.  As a grub, she was fed rotten wood and occasional dog biscuits. As a beetle, she will feed on fruit smoothie and bananas.  She doesn't bite but she will quickly grab onto any unsuspecting finger with her pin-sharp claws; the only way to get her off is to put her in soil and encourage her to go underground.

Fifteen grubs of a related species of Rhino beetle (Chalcosoma chiron) are also being bred at the butterfly house and are currently about an inch long.