Large oak barbel is a winged insect that belongs to the family of barbel. This species has a Mediterranean origin. It occurs in the southern and central regions of Europe, in the north of the African continent and in Asia Minor. In the territory of the former Soviet Union, the beetle is common in countries such as Ukraine and Belarus. Often it can be found in the Caucasus. The oak barbel beetle is mainly found in mixed parks and forests and in old overmature oak forests. Often insects settle on lonely standing trees.
What does a bug look like?
Among the various species of the barbel family, the largest is the oak barbel. We will describe the description of this insect in more detail:
- The barbel has a length of 23 to 65 mm. The body color is black and brown.
- The tips of the elytra are reddish brown.
- Large wrinkles cover the chest shield, on the sides of which there are sharp spikes.
- Oak barbel has a very long mustache. In the female, their size corresponds to the length of the body, but in the male it is 1.5 times larger. To the touch, the mustache and abdomen of the insect have a silky structure.
Entomologists studying insects use the above signs to compile special tables.
Description of the insect in the larval stage
Beetle larvae are quite large in size: length - about 90 mm, and thickness - from 17 to 22 mm. The body is painted in yellow-white or cream color. The head is brownish-red, three eyes are located on it. The larva has very powerful jaws, they are painted black. The chest part is very wide, and the back is covered with chitin. The growths located on the back and abdomen help in moving the larva along the passages and holes made in the tree.
Enemies of the insect
In nature, the oak barbel has many enemies. A woodpecker that regales itself on beetle larvae living in wood is considered especially dangerous. Some insects belonging to the order Hymenoptera (for example, encyrtids) can parasitize on beetle eggs. Some species of carnivorous beetles prey on larvae of the barbel:
- karapuzik;
- Nutcracker
- motley.
Insect lifestyle
You can meet an adult insect from May to September. Oak barbel is especially active in the summer season. Mostly it flies in the daytime, but with the onset of hot weather you can see the bug in the evening. Most often, insects live on trees that secrete a special sap - gum. It attracts beetles that flock to the plant to feast on. The barbel oak settles in a tree, gnaws entire tunnels in its trunk, because of which the plant "cries" (exudes juice).
Despite the fact that the female beetle lives only 3 months, during this period she is able to lay up to 100 eggs. The place of masonry is cracks in the tree bark. A beetle is looking for a suitable plant with its long mustache.
After 2 weeks, larvae emerge from the eggs. They penetrate into the bark of a tree and live here throughout the summer period.
The following trees are considered the most suitable for the habitat of the beetle:
- an old oak;
- elm;
- hornbeam;
- beech.
Beetle larvae develop very slowly. In the second year of life, their length is from 50 to 60 mm, and in the third reaches 100 mm. Before pupation, the larva digs tunnels in the wood. The length of the moves can reach 50, and in some cases even 100 cm. At the end of a long tunnel, the barbel oaks builds an oval-shaped lullaby for itself. Its size is approximately 10 cm by 3 cm. In the lullaby, the larva makes a hole through which the adult beetle will subsequently come out. With the help of wood fibers and bark, the output is clogged.
In the cradle, the larva passes into the pupal stage. During the same year, an adult is hatched. In its cradle, the beetle spends all winter, and in the spring it gets out of its shelter by specially prepared moves.
The entire development cycle, from egg laying to the formation of an adult, takes 3-4 years and depends on weather conditions and the state of the tree in which the insect lives.
Red Book Beetle
More recently, when Europe had a large number of oak groves, this species of beetle was one of the most malicious pests in the forest. In one tree, numerous insect colonies accumulated, and this led to the death of the plant. Beetles made many moves in the wood, thereby violating its structure. The plant began to dry from the top of the crown, and after a while completely perished. When sick trees were identified, they were felled, and a layer of bark was removed from the stumps.
The disappearance of oak forests led to a significant reduction in the population of barbel beetles. In the 1980s, this insect was classified as a protected species.
Barbel oak is protected by law in countries such as:
- Germany.
- Czech.
- Poland.
- Slovakia.
- Ukraine.
- Lithuania.
- Belarus.
In Armenia, this species of barbel is included in the list of protected insects.
Human economic activity often causes the death of various species of animals. Many of them have completely disappeared from our planet. People should think about what irreparable damage they cause to the environment, and urgently take action.