Walking on the mountain city greenway, you can often see a beetle crawling on the side of the greenway with horns on its head, and it is easy to determine that it belongs to the Coleoptera/Scarab (total) family by looking at its antennae.
Mobile phone shooting, montmorillon rhinoceros golden turtle
Rhinoceros golden turtle (Coleoptera / Scarab beetle family / Rhinoceros turtle family), a relatively common rhinoceros turtle in China.
The first time I photographed this beetle with horns (horned protrusions), I thought of a rhinoceros with a horn on its head. Not to mention, later "according to the name of Tuso" to verify, this beetle with horned protrusions on its head is really a rhinoceros turtle in the Coleoptera order: a rhinoceros golden turtle, resembling a rhinoceros.
Mobile phone shooting, montmorillon rhinoceros golden turtle, shaped like a rhinoceros
Mongolosa rhinoceros turtle, a large beetle, with a body length of about 32-52 mm. The male has a strong horned process with anterior width and posterior narrowing, curving upwards. The anterior part of the dorsal plate of the anterior thorax is sloped, and the posterior bulge is tumor-like. There is a pair of dendritic protrusions on the anterior side of the tumor process, and the anterior and posterior sides are very coarsely wrinkled. The female has a simple head and is densely packed with thick dots.
Mobile phone shooting, montmorillon rhinoceros golden turtle. Curved and powerful process, posteriorly uplifted in the form of a neoplastic process.
The overall appearance looks rough and mighty, but it does not lose its thickness and cuteness, and it occurs once a year, and the adult insect occurs from May to September every year. Adults like to dig holes in the surface of the soil near the roots of the host, forming numerous wormholes.
Mobile phone shooting, montmorillon rhinoceros golden turtle. It belongs to the more common species of rhinoceros turtle in China
It is no wonder that when I often encounter it, I always see that it has a lot of dirt on it (in order to have a good look, I have to scrub it with water). What makes me wonder is, with such a thick horned protrusion, how does it dig a hole in the soil?
Mobile phone shooting, montmorillon rhinoceros golden turtle. Main domestic distribution: Hunan, Guangdong, Guizhou, Guangxi, Chongqing, Sichuan, Yunnan, Fujian, Taiwan, Hainan
Suspected: Rhinoceros Golden Turtle (for verification)
Mobile phone shooting, suspected: Rong tumor rhinoceros golden turtle
Looking at the shape, it feels like this rhinoceros turtle is a miniature version of the rhinoceros turtle. I have found a lot of information about rhinoceros turtles, checked from the distribution area and appearance, and what can be approached is this suspected: Rong tumor rhinoceros turtle. Confirmation!
Dai Fork Rhinoceros Golden Turtle (also known as David's Unicorn Fairy), a rare animal (national second-class protected animal). The male is about 23-55 mm long and the female is about 12-32 mm long.
Canon 100 Micro, Light Excellence: f/6.3 (1/15) shooting, wearing a forked rhinoceros turtle
Wearing a forked rhinoceros golden turtle, the male insect head horn is developed and curved backwards, and there is a fork at the tip. There is a diamond-shaped spike on each side of the middle of the head horn. The thorax is smooth, with the thoracic angle almost upright in the center and the tip bifurcated. The tibia segment of the forefoot is narrow and long, with 3 spines on the lateral margin.
17-40mm lens 40mm end, manual panoramic film (a set of 3 photos) shooting, wearing forked rhinoceros turtle
The appearance of the forked rhinoceros turtle is somewhat similar to that of the unicorn fairy, and the main distinguishing features of the two are: the forked rhinoceros turtle has only one fork in the head horn, and there are lateral protruding diamond-shaped spikes in the middle, and the body size is smaller than that of the unicorn fairy. The head horn of the unicorn has two forks and no spikes in the middle. As shown in the legend below, the characteristics of the forked rhinoceros turtle
Canon 100 micro, manual: f/8, 1/30 shooting, wearing forked rhinoceros turtle, local close-up
Dai fork rhinoceros golden turtle, adult occurrence period is 7-8 months, has a strong phototropism. Domestic distribution: Fujian, Hunan, Jiangxi, Zhejiang and other places.
Canon 100 micro, manual panoramic filming (a group of 3 photos) shooting, wearing forked rhinoceros turtle
Mutant individual: Rhinoceros
17-40mm lens 40mm end, light superiority: f/11 (1/60) shooting, mutant: wearing forked rhinoceros turtle
Photographing insects is basically about photographing living bodies because of spirituality. When the rhinoceros turtle was photographed, it was already dead, so it was only a few close-ups of the head. Later, when it was investigated, it was mistaken for Ji Du (a kind of rhinoceros golden turtle).
17-40mm lens 37mm end, manual: f/8, 1/50 shooting, mutant: wearing forked rhinoceros turtle, local close-up
A real insect expert in the same city corrected: This rhinoceros golden turtle is a mutant of the rhinoceros golden turtle wearing a fork. There is no distribution of Himebuki within the Yamashiro (Sanming) range.
17-40mm lens 37mm end, manual: f/8, 1/50 shooting, mutant: wearing forked rhinoceros turtle
Photographing insects, mostly with encounters, did not deliberately seek to shoot. It is also a fate to meet these rhinoceros turtles. In the process of investigation, it is felt that the distribution of various rhinoceros turtles in the rhinoceros turtle family is very regional. This is also the reason why I have not been able to meet the "one-horned fairy" as I wished, unfortunately.
Rhinoceros Turtle Shooting Technique: Most rhinoceros turtles are medium and large beetles. In addition to the body length, there is also a certain body width, and the shape tends to be oval. During the shooting process, especially during the shooting process using macro lenses, it is necessary to control the shooting distance and combine medium and small apertures (5.6-11). Choose a good shooting angle and handle the bokeh effect of background blur. Simple pictures are important in insect photography.
Canon 100 micro, manual: f/8, 1/30 shooting, wearing a fork rhinoceros turtle
Filming location: Sanming, Fujian
(Original photographic graphics to share the joy of eco-photography.) If there is a mistake, please correct and forgive, thank you for your viewing support and encouragement) Respect the original, please do not carry plagiarism!