(list includes synonyms of meleagris, sometimes treated as a subspecies[1])
Scarabaeus goliatus Linnaeus, 1771
Scarabaeus goliath Sulzer, 1776 (Missp.)
Scarabaeus goliathus Goeze, 1777 (Emend.)
Goliathus africanus Lamarck, 1801
Goliathus giganteus Lamarck, 1817
Goliathus imperialis Klug, 1835
Goliathus magnus Duncan, 1835
Goliathus drurii Macleay, 1838
Goliathus giganteus conspersus Kraatz, 1889
Goliathus giganteus marginatus Kraatz, 1889
Goliathus giganteus marginifer Kraatz, 1889
Goliathus giganteus quadrimaculatus Kraatz, 1889
Goliathus giganteus apicalis Kraatz, 1895
Goliathus intermedius Kraatz, 1895
Goliathus giganteus nigripes Kraatz, 1895
Goliathus giganteus albatus Kraatz, 1897
Goliathus giganteus confluens Kraatz, 1897
Goliathus giganteus interruptus Kraatz, 1897
Goliathus giganteus undulatus Kraatz, 1897
Goliathus giganteus conjunctivittis Kraatz, 1898
Goliathus giganteus curtivittis Kraatz, 1898
Goliathus giganteus longivittis Kraatz, 1898
Goliathus giganteus connectens Csiki, 1904
Goliathus giganteus grandis Veen, 1904
Goliathus meleagris Sjöstedt, 1927
Goliathus meleagris conjugatus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus meleagris divergens Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus meleagris maculatus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus meleagris niveus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus meleagris nyassae Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus meleagris oculatus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus meleagris partitus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus meleagris pustulatus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus meleagris pustuliferus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus meleagris quadrangulatus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus meleagris varians Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus goliathus adspersus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus confluens albovariegatus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus goliathus hieroglyphicus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus confluens striatus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus goliathus undulus Sjöstedt, 1928
Goliathus goliathus albipennis Endrödi, 1960
Goliathus goliathus guttatus Endrödi, 1960
Goliathus goliathus palmatus Endrödi, 1960
Goliathus goliathus trivittatus Endrödi, 1960
Goliathus goliathus vittiger Endrödi, 1960
Goliathus goliatus is a very large species of
beetle of the family
Scarabaeidae, native to tropical Africa.[2]
Description
Goliathus goliatus is one of the largest species in the genus Goliathus, males having a body length of 50–110 millimetres (2.0–4.3 in) and females having a body length of 54–80 millimetres (2.1–3.1 in). The
pronotum (thoracic shield) is mainly black, with whitish longitudinal stripes, while the
elytra are mostly dark brown in the typical form. The color of the elytra may differ greatly in some other forms, with varying amounts and patterns of brown, white and black. The elytra are mostly white in the "quadrimaculatus" form, which (along with various intermediate forms that have been named "albatus", "apicalis", "conspersus", "hieroglyphicus" and "undulatus") occur together with the more common brown typical form in
Benin, eastern
Nigeria and western
Cameroun.[2]
This species possess a large and membranous secondary pair of wings actually used for flying. When not in use, they are kept completely folded beneath the elytra. The head is whitish, with a black Y-shaped horn in males, used as a pry bar in battles with other males over feeding sites or mates. These beetles feed primarily on tree sap and fruits.
Goliathus goliatus is mainly present in the equatorial forests and in the sub-equatorial savannah.
Exhibited in 1959 at New York City museum
On January 1, 1959, a species from
Gabon, believed to be the first such beetle seen alive in the United States, went on display at the
American Museum of Natural History.[3]