✅ Parent Info:
▪ Parents: WD (Wild-caught)
▪ Parent body length: Male 62.37mm / Female 45.02mm
▪ Number of eggs laid: 33 eggs
▪ Substrate used for laying: LB Flake Soil
▪ Oviposition setup temperature: 22–25°C (71–77°F)
✅ Life Cycle:
▪ Larval rearing temperature: 20–26°C (68–79°F)
▪ Incubation period of eggs: 1–6 months
▪ Survival rate from hatching to L2: Very low (suspected due to red mites from wild parents eating eggs)
▪ Substrate used for larvae: LB Flake Soil
▪ Amount of flake soil used per larva: 8.4L (2.2 gallons)
▪ Larval period: 10–14 months
▪ Max larva weight: Males 48g, Females 37g
▪ Pupal period: 30-45 days
▪ Max pupa weight: Males 38g, Females 31g
▪ Inactive periods: 25-40 days
▪ Maturity period: 20-30 days after inactive periods
(It depends on the individual and its size, the larger they are, the longer it takes)
▪ Life span of adult: 3-6 months
▪ Max adult body length: Males 86.1mm, Females 59.3mm
▪ Bekuwa CB Guinness record: 89.1.mm
The conversion rate from larval weight to pupal weight is approximately 70–85%, representing a reduction of about 15–30%.
Assuming there are no significant wandering symptoms, male larvae with a final weight of 40g or more can be expected to produce adults exceeding 80mm, while female larvae with a final weight of 30g or more can be expected to produce adults exceeding 55mm.
7 months after hatching - Male
10 months after hatching - Male
Male pupa (Left)
Female pupa (Right)
Male pupa (Left)
Female pupa (Right)
LBDG WF1 -1 (Left) 84.0mm
LBDG WF1 -3 (Right) 89.70mm
I had hoped it would surpass the Guinness record of 89.1 mm, but measurements should be taken about one week after eclosion rather than immediately after emergence.
The actual measured size is 86.1 mm.
(After eclosion, a beetle’s abdomen gradually shortens and becomes more rounded as it hardens)
LBDG WF1 -4 / 59.37mm
The last female to eclose.
Her final larval weight was 37g, so I thought she would be a male.
Since a 37g male would typically reach a size of over 75mm, she emerged as an adult of truly remarkable size.
What makes her especially unique is not just her massive size, but also her rare appearance, with almost no black spots.
LBDG WF1 -6 (Left) 55.16mm
LBDG WF1 -7 (Right) 56.40mm
LBDG WF1 -8 (Left) 56.91mm
LBDG WF1 -9 (Right) 57.10mm
A female with almost no black spots, just like LBDG WF1-4.
📌 Notes to keep in mind
Thankfully, all of the females eclosed safely without any issues.
However, all of the males showed eclosion defects in which they were unable to properly fold and store their hindwings.
The parent beetles measured 62mm (male) and 45mm (female), which are considered small to medium-sized individuals.
Although they were wild caught, truly large wild specimens, exceeding 70mm for males and 50mm for females, are extremely rare.
When an individual grows beyond its natural potential, problems such as the inability to properly store the hindwings can occur.
This is a very common and natural phenomenon among breeders working with extreme-thickness lines or large-size lines.
To produce large adults, it is fundamentally necessary to raise large larvae.
As larvae grow, the abdominal area becomes enlarged, and during pupation the abdomen contracts while the thorax expands, with body fluids moving upward in sequence toward the head and mandibles (horns).
The problem arises after eclosion, when the abdomen shrinks and the elytra reshape themselves to match the abdomen.
If sufficient body fluid cannot be transferred toward the head, the abdomen remains too large, causing the elytra to bulge upward.
As a result, the hindwings cannot be properly folded and stored.
“Making beetles larger and thicker than wild individuals requires supplementing nutrients that wild larvae never receive.”
On a physiological level, those nutrients are converted into exoskeletal material, allowing the beetle to develop a much larger body.
In this process, it is essentially impossible to increase overall size without also increasing abdominal volume.
In short, the formula is.
“Increasing larval weight is the most important factor, and wing eclosion defects are a consequence of that result.”
That said, this issue tends to gradually improve over successive generations, so it is not something to be overly concerned about.