119: Prionus Longhorn
There are eight species of Prionus Longhorn Beetle in Colorado, all of whom are notable for their large antennae. They are among the largest of all beetles in the state and can grow to almost 2 inches long – but that doesn’t make them particularly big in the world of beetles outside of Colorado! The titan beetle of the Amazon rainforest can be over 6 inches long, for example. And during the Paleozoic era, griffinflies had wingspans up to 28 inches wide (click there for an incredible fossil)!
For Prionus longhorns, the males are often smaller than the females, but they have more elaborate antennae. All start life as larvae who bore into roots for three to five years, before a warm weather event – often a heavy rain – triggers their transformation into adults from a soil chamber dug out near the roots they once feasted on as children. Do you think insects are ever nostalgic for that larval stage?
This is definitely not my best drawing but I did have fun playing with the marker brush set on my ipad.