Family Lucanidae 
Stag Beetles 
Stag beetles are distinguished by very large mandibles, which in the males of 
certain species are branched like the antlers of a stag, and by the plates of the 
antennal club, which are rigid and cannot be opened or closed. They are usually 
found in or beneath rotting logs or stumps. The larvae feed on the juices of rotting 
wood. 
The giant stag beetle, Lucanus elaphus F., the most familiar species, infests 
dead stumps in the South. Adults are large, fearsome insects, up to 60 mm long. 
Male mandibles are branched and are more than half as long as the body. 
Pseudolucanus capreolus (L.) is also a common species. It breeds in the trunks of 
old, partly decayed trees such as apple, cherry, willow, and oak. The adults fly at 
night and are frequently attracted to lights. Other eastern species include Platycerus 
quercus Weber, Ceruchus piceus (Weber), Dorcus parallelus Say, and Sinodendron 
rugosum Mannerheim. The first three breed in moist, almost completely decayed 
logs. S. rugosum breeds in decayed alder, willow, and poplars. 
Family Scarabaeidae 
Scarabs 
The family Scarabaeidae is represented in the United States by more than 1,400 
species, the majority occurring in the eastern half of the country. Depending on 
their feeding habits, members of the family fall into two distinct groups. One group 
comprises the so-called dung beetles, the larvae and adults of which are 
saprophytic, feeding on such materials as dung, carrion, and decomposing plants. 
The second group consists of species whose larvae feed on the roots or juices of 
living plants, decaying vegetable matter, rotten wood, leaf mold, and sometimes 
manure. The adults feed chiefly on the foliage of plants. They are commonly 
referred to as lamellicorn leaf chafers. Many of the plant-feeding species are 
important pests of nursery, plantation, woodlot, shade, and forest trees. The adults 
of most of these are nocturnal and are strongly attracted to lights. 
Scarab beetles have stout bodies, the last three to six or seven segments of the 
antennae are leaflike and capable of being opened or closed. Their front legs are 
fitted for digging. The larvae or grubs are usually thick, white or yellow, enlarged 
posteriorly, bent in the shape of a crescent, and have well-developed legs. 
The genus Phyllophaga is represented in the United States and Canada by more 
than 100 species, the majority of which occur in the East (756). The adults, 
commonly called May or June beetles, are robust, oval, light straw to very dark 
brown, and from about 12 to 25 mm long (fig. 115A). The wing covers are smooth 
and shiny or are covered with short hairs. The antennae are lamellate and end in 
three-jointed clubs; the tarsal claws are armed with a small tooth near the middle. 
The larvae, commonly called white grubs, are milky white, strongly curved, and 
about 25 mm long at maturity (fig. 115B). The head is brownish, all of the hind 
parts are shiny, and body contents are visible through the skin. 
The adults of certain species are most abundant in the spring, usually in May; 
others reach peaks of abundance in June or July (/030). They tend to stay out of 
sight under stones, leaves, or trash, or in the soil during the day; and to fly, mate, 
and feed at night. Eggs are laid in masses in the soil at depths of 8 to 18 cm, each 
egg being placed in a cavity in the center of a ball of dirt. Newly hatched larvae feed 
on organic matter; then they move to tender roots of seedlings and other plants to 
feed. The winter is spent in the larval stage at depths determined by temperatures 
and frost levels. Pupation takes place in the soil at depths of a few centimeters to 30 
267 
