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 Beetles are the largest group of insects in the world with over 350,000 species
recognized worldwide, but over 95% of them are less than a centrimetre (half an
inch) in length. No one knows how many species of beetles love on Kinabalu but
they show an amazing diversity of shape, size, colour, and life-style.
 Some of the most conspicuous are the shiny black rhinoceros beetles that sport
long black horns on their head and brown and black stag beetles with greatly
enlarged and strengthened jaws. Only the males bear these appendages which are
used in trials of strength. The females of both groups, being smaller and
lacking the fearsome ornamentation of the males look quite different. During the
mating season, from September to October, these beetles are commonly attracted
to lights at Park HQ, around Poring Hot Springs, and also at Mesilau.
 One of the most attractive groups is the Chrysomelid or jewel beetles, often
with a golden or green metallic sheen. These are day flying and feed on nectar
in flowering trees, in which they are often found in large numbers. One recent
study of canopy insects at Poring showed that Chrysomelid beetles made up almost
one quarter of the total beetle inhabitants, and recent studies in Sarawak have
shown that Chrysomelid beetles are of considerable importance in the pollination
of dipterocarps and probably of other flowering trees.
 Most curious of all, though, must be the Trilobite beetles of the genus
Duliticola. It is the female of the species that is the most striking, retaining
its almost prehistoric larval form even when sexually mature. At Park HQ, an
undescribed species, black with a striking orange rim, can often be seen
crawling slowly over the rotting logs on which it feeds along the trails.
Another, smaller, darker species that lacks the striking orange rim, Duliticola
paradoxa, has been recorded from Poring. |
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