- Who
- Goliath beetles Goliathus regius and G. goliathus
- What
- 70–100 gram(s)
- Where
- Not Applicable ()
- When
The heaviest adult beetles are the goliath beetles (family Scarabaeidae) of equatorial Africa. The largest are Goliathus regius and G. goliathus (=G. giganteus). In measurements of one series of males (females are smaller), the lengths from the tips of the small frontal horns to the end of the abdomen were up to 11 cm (4.33 in), with weights of 70–100 g (2.5–3.5 oz).
Heavier even than adult goliath beetles are the enormous larvae of the giant actaeon beetle Megasoma actaeon, native to South America. One freakishly huge mature male larva of this species weighed an astonishing 228 g (almost as heavy as an adult female common rat!). It had been bred in Japan in 2009, its mother having been collected in Satipo, Peru. This same specimen also holds the record for the world's heaviest insect of any type, the world's heaviest larval beetle, and the world's heaviest beetle from any life stage.
