What is the Rhino Beetle Diet?

The type of of food that rhino beetles eat varies depending upon which stage of the life cycle it is in. Adult rhino beetles do not eat as much is their enormous size might indicate. The growing larva, on the other hand, do have quite an appetite.

Female rhino beetles prefer to drop their eggs on rotting logs and plant matter on the forest floor. This is because the larva feed on this decaying organic matter and it gives the larva a much greater chance of survival.

The larva, being virtually blind, must feed on any available food source in their general area. They are largely immobile until they become adults. The larva eat large quantities of food in relation to their size in order to accommodate their growth.

When the larva enter the pupa stage they do not eat food. The pupa are in a form of hibernation, waiting for suitable environmental conditions in order to emerge as adults.

The adult rhinoceros beetle diet consists of a wide range of plant material. They are strict herbivores and do not eat other animals. Fruits, vegetables, sap, and nectar are favored food sources of the adult beetles. The adults feed at night and are largely inactive during the day.