Okinawa rhinoceros beetle Coloring Pages

A special beetle found only in Okinawa! Name origins and its English name

Just like its name says, Okinawa rhinoceros beetle is a super rare beetle that lives only in Okinawa, Japan. It is a cousin (subspecies) of the normal beetle you usually see on the main islands of Japan.

In English, it is called "Okinawa rhinoceros beetle." "Rhinoceros" means the animal rhino. So the name means a beetle in Okinawa with big, cool horns like a rhino!

How is it different from main island beetles? Secrets of its look

At first look, it looks like a normal beetle. But if you look closely, you can find many cool traits that only Okinawa rhinoceros beetle has.

• Small and round body: It is one size smaller than beetles on the main islands. Even big males are only about 5 to 6 centimeters long. Its whole body is nice and round.

• Short horns: The proud horns on its head and chest are short and cute compared to main island beetles. It has a gentle and cute kind of cool look.

• Pure black body: Many main island beetles are reddish-brown. But Okinawa rhinoceros beetle is special because it is shiny, pretty black!

When can you see it? The best season

Okinawa rhinoceros beetle is most active in warm summer (around June to August). Okinawa is warm even in winter, so they sometimes come out earlier than on the main islands. They are nocturnal bugs that start moving around actively at night.

Where does it live? Places to find it

They only live on the main island of Okinawa and the small islands around it (the Okinawa Islands)! Millions of years ago, Okinawa was connected to the Asian continent. They came over back then, got left on the islands, and grew in their own special way. They are like a natural treasure of Okinawa! You can find many of them in rich acorn forests in Yanbaru (the northern part of Okinawa).

What does it eat to grow big?

• Grown-up beetle (Adult): It loves sweet tree sap from oak trees in the forest. When you keep one as a pet, it happily munches on bug jelly!

• Baby time (Larva): As a larva in the dirt, it eats lots of rich, black soil made from rotten wood to grow big and strong!

How long does it live? Lifespan

The full lifespan of Okinawa rhinoceros beetle is about one year in total. But it spends most of that time (about 8 months) in the dirt as a larva. After coming out of its shell as an adult to fly around outside, it lives for only a short time, about 1 to 3 months.

Does it love to talk? The secret of its squeaky sounds

One super fun thing about Okinawa rhinoceros beetle is that it makes sounds a lot! If you pick it up gently or touch it, both males and females make squeaky sounds like "gyu-gyu" or "chu-chu." They sound much louder than main island beetles! They make this sound by rubbing their tummy against their wings. It is their way of saying, "Hey! Don't scare me!" when they are mad or trying to act tough.

In danger of disappearing? A precious local bug to protect

Right now, Okinawa rhinoceros beetle is in danger of disappearing. Japan protects it very carefully. This is because people brought big main island beetles to Okinawa and set them free. If they mix with main island beetles, pure Okinawa rhinoceros beetle will disappear. To protect the bugs native to Okinawa, it is very important never to release bugs from other places into the wild!

Not Like the Mainland Ones! How to Show Shiny Black

If you want to color your Okinawa rhinoceros beetle to look like a real one, how you use black is the big secret!

• Don't make it pure black: If you fill it all in with black, the lines disappear and it will look flat. First, color the whole body lightly with dark gray or dark brown.

• The shiny magic trick: Leave thin white spots on the rounded head and back to show light. Then, color dark black right around those white spots. You will get a cool, shiny black body that glints in the tropical sun!

How to Color the Short, Cool Horns to Look 3D

Make the Okinawa rhinoceros beetle's short, thick horns stand out to show off its best feature.

• How to add shadows: Put dark black under the horn and at the bottom. Blend it into lighter gray as you reach the top. This makes the short horn look strong and like it is popping straight out at you!

• Spiky legs: Trace the sharp claws and strong leg joints in dark black. This makes your bug look super real as it clings to the tree.

The Hidden Stripe Pattern on the Female

If you get to color a female (the round bug without horns), try drawing a special pattern on her.

• Add light stripes: The female Okinawa rhinoceros beetle has faint straight lines on her back that mainland ones do not have. Use black or dark brown to draw light, thin lines straight down. Bug experts will be amazed that you know this cool secret!

Use Trees and Backdrops to Show Okinawa's Nature

Color the tree and background with lots of colors to make the whole picture fun!

• Bumpy tree trunks: Move your pencil straight up and down following the lines of the tree bark using brown and dark brown. Mix in a little green in the gaps to make it look like a real tree in a mossy forest.

• Okinawa's blue sky and rich forest: Color the empty space like a bright blue sky, or draw the green Yanbaru forest using light green and dark green. The black body will pop, making your picture look just like a page from a cool bug guide!

A special beetle that only lives in Okinawa

The Okinawa rhinoceros beetle is a special beetle that lives only on the main island of Okinawa and its nearby islands. Compared to mainland beetles, its body is one size smaller, and its proud horns are shorter.

It loves to talk in a loud voice!

Mainland beetles do not make noise very often, but the Okinawa rhinoceros beetle makes loud sounds a lot. It makes noise by rubbing its body and the wings on its back together. It sounds just like it is talking to you!

Is hard wood a treat for the larvae?

Normal beetle larvae grow up by eating soft fallen leaves in the dirt, right? But the Okinawa rhinoceros beetle larvae crunch on *dead, fallen trees* in the forest. They make a bed inside the wood and grow big!

The "grand senior" of the beetle world

In fact, people say it is the closest to the oldest ancestor among all beetle friends in Japan. Since the Okinawa islands were formed long ago, it is a beetle with a long history that has kept evolving in its own special way.