Your insect is probably a beetle of some kind

Order: Coleoptera
Body length: Up to 180mm
Species: World - 370 000, UK - 3729

Beetles account for a third of all insect species. They come in all shapes and sizes, and have distinctive toughened forewings called elytra (el-ee-tra).

Beetles have biting mouthparts, and sometimes these 'jaws' can make up a third of the insect's total length. Male stag beetles fight one another using their jaws.

Find out all about beetles

Find out about different types of insects.
Return to the list on the Instant I.D. homepage and click on another link.