Chromosomal analysis has shown that the genus Dynastes originated from South America. Known populations include the Lesser Antilles, Trinidad and Tobago, Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru. hercules may be found from southern Mexico to Bolivia in mountainous and lowland rain forests. Hercules beetle illustration from The Naturalist's Miscellany (1789–1813) by George Shaw (1751–1813). hercules have punctured elytra which are usually entirely black, but sometimes have the last quarter of the elytra colored in the same way as the males. At low humidity the elytra are olive-green or yellow in color, but darken to black at higher humidity due to its hygrochromic properties. They have a slightly iridescent coloration to their elytra, which varies in color between specimens and may be affected by the humidity of the local environment in which they develop. They have a black suture with sparsely distributed black spots elsewhere on the elytra. The body of males is black with the exception of the elytra, which can have shades of olive-green. ĭynastes hercules is highly sexually dimorphic, with only males exhibiting the characteristic horns (one on the head, and a much larger one on the prothorax). This variability results from developmental mechanisms that coincide with genetic predisposition in relation to nutrition, stress, exposure to parasites, and/or physiological conditions. The size of the horn is naturally variable, more so than any variation of the size of legs, wings, or overall body size in the species. Male Hercules beetles may reach up to 173 mm (7 in) in length (including the horn), making them the longest species of beetle in the world, if jaws and/or horns are included in the measurement.
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