Worthy’s Waitomo Beetle (Waitomophylax worthyi)

Worthy’s Waitomo Beetle was described in 2002 based on subfossil material that was recovered from Holocene deposits from a cave in the Waitomo region on the north Island of New Zealand.

The remains are nearly complete and the species had reached a size of about 2,45 cm in length making it the largest known member of its family.

Worthy’s Waitomo Beetle was flightless which made it especially vulnerable to predation by introduced mammals like rats. [1][2]

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References:

[1] Richard A. B. Leschen; Birgit E. Rhode: A new genus and species of large Ulodidae (Coleoptera) from New Zealand. New Zealand Entomologist 25(1): 57-64. 2002
[2] Richard A. B. Leschen; Birgit E. Rhode: A replacement name for Archaeophylax Leschen and Rhode (Coleoptera: Ulodidae). New Zealand Entomologist 27: 125. 2004

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edited: 26.04.2021