Family Cerambycidae

A large family of beetles with over 17,000 species around the world, this group is well represented in Papua New Guinea. From tiny insects less than one a centimetre in length to giant Kapiak beetles with total body and antennae lengths of up to 25cm, these beetles are almost entirely wood boring at the larval stage. Preferring mostly soft and decaying wood, they can often be found several weeks later in tree trunks cut to make new food gardens. Possessing very strong mandibles they can inflict a nasty bite if not handled correctly, and some such as Batocera wallacei can create a loud noise by rubbing their thorax and abdomen sections together. The adult Rosenbergia beetles are quite often found early in the morning feeding on the sap of certain fig trees, and these trees are sometimes cut to attract and collect these beetles. Batocera wallacei is sometimes called the Kapiak (Breadfruit) Beetle, because since the introduction of this tree many years ago it has developed a liking to its sap. The strong mandibles cut the bark and the insect drinks in the sap then, and on subsequent visits to the tree. Many of the Rosenbergias are only found for very short periods during the year (e.g. R. gilmouri in the Bulolo area), and this and the ease in which their white and red colouring can be scratched makes them an expensive insect in perfect condition.

Good reference books include the Sciences Nat series Volume 1 by J. Rigout "Batocerini 1" and Volume 2 by J. Rigout "Batocerini 2".