Missing in action?

 

Missing in action?

The problem with recording stag beetles for the Great Stag Hunt (https://stagbeetles.ptes.org/take-part-in-the-great-stag-hunt/) is that one beetle looks pretty much like any other.

We found one a few years ago that had 5½ legs. Over the course of a couple of day the cats kept bringing it into the conservatory. They seemed intrigued by it but didn’t want to do anything with it other than carry it from outside to inside.

This morning we found one on his back on the patio. We tipped him onto his front and realised he was missing one mandible. It didn’t stop him rearing up aggressively, poor little thing, but then he moved away quickly, as much as a little creature can. Gilbert was extremely interested and wanted to nose him but we told him to desist.

An hour and a half later the beetle was in our sitting room, courtesy of Herschel, who deposited him and left. We have now put him back outside and hopefully that is where he will remain.

I wondered if beetles could regenerate missing parts and sadly, they can’t. We will never know how he lost his mandible; maybe it was in battle with a rival, who knows.         

  Monsieur stag beetle will develop a list to the right, I think.