Please help with bug identification...

[greeneggsnham]

Ok so I found this bug at my house today and it was so unusual that I had to catch it and find out what it was. It is about 2-3 inches long and about as thick as a mans thumb any ideas? Oh and he has these really huge sharp looking jaws.

Here are a couple pics of it next to half of a carrot.

 

[sgtmom52]

Kind of looks like one of these ~ Broad-Necked Root Borer

 

[aggie9296]

Agree. Some sort of wood borer beetle. There are many different types.

 

[greeneggsnham]

Thank you guys so much! It makes sense to see one here because out of the twenty trees or so on our lot, twelve of them are pecan trees. I found out that they are really damaging to them so out to the pen it went. The chickens stared at it for all of five seconds before one grabbed it and ran.

I don't think I have seen a better game of chase in quite a long time once they figured out it was edible.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Those are commonly referred to as darkling beetles, although there are thousands of different varieties. I find them around our barn and hay mow because they like to feed on grain. Did you find it in an area where you were storing chicken feed?

 

[aggie9296]

Quote:
I don't think so. I have mealworms that turn into darklings. No more than 3/4 of an inch long and don't have those long antennae.
That bad boy is huge.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Quote:
You're right. I didn't notice the size.

 

[greeneggsnham]

I raise mealworms too and actually picked it up because it looked like a darkling beetle on steroids.

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

It would be hard to say without looking more carefully at it, but it's almost certainly in the family Cerambycidae.

 

[nurse_turtle]

Some type of wood beetle, maybe feeds on dead and decaying wood. I had issues with betsy beetles some time ago although your fella isn't a betsy but is of similar type. If you have decayed wood nearby, look there for more. If for no other reason, to watch the chicken chase!