Out there in the natural world, there are some creatures we struggle to love (the list might include Rats, House Flies and leeches, for example) and those that command instant amazement.

And slap bang in the latter category, I would claim, is this fella.

 

There he was, broad daylight, in my new front garden, a Stag Beetle showing off his mightily impressive mandibles. You ought to have heard my whoops of delight! (I admit he suffered the indignity of being picked up for a short while to be admired close up).

And he arrived in a week when I received this photo from Wildlife Friendly of a beetle that she had found in her Devon garden last year. 

Hers isn't quite so well known, but no less impressive really. It is called Prionus coriarius - the Tanner Beetle or Sawyer Beetle.

Now I need to remember that some of you may be going 'Yeuchh!' but I'm guessing most of you are going wow, even if you might not want to pick one up.

So, if you're thinking you might like to see one of these in your garden, what are these beauties' Home Needs?

The big requirement for Stag Beetles is rotting wood, preferably partly or totally buried, on which the larvae can munch for up to seven years.

The Sawyer Beetle appears to also feed on rotting wood, perhaps in standing dead trees.

The downside is that both have quite restricted distributions, being mainly found between Dorset in the west and Essex in the east.

But even if you don't live in an area where these beasts are found, I'm sure that something some day will turn up in your garden that makes you whoop. And if you do, we'd love to know...

  • This beetle made a brief appearance in my garden, but unfortunately he was snatched up by a bird slightly after I took the photograph! /Users/Syvlia/Desktop/IMG_0988.jpg

  • I have been able to find very little information on what the Prionus coriarius requires in the way of habitat. I do have a lot of wood buried in various places around the garden, I was hoping to attract a Stag beetle (lucky, lucky you) but just perhaps my beetle is a result of this buried wood.

    The Prionus coriarius that visited my garden appeared to be nocturnal. It remained still during the day but as soon as dusk arrived it became very animated and began feeding on Cosmos flowers. I will admit to moving out of its way when it was in flight, it is a large beetle but when its wing cases are open and its wings fully stretched it was far larger than I was comfortable with.