Common cockchafer  (Melolontha melolontha)

This common, large beetle often crashes into lighted windows at night during early summer (3). It is a familiar beetle that belongs to the same family as dung beetles (Scarabaeidae) (4). As it flies it produces an alarming loud buzzing noise, but it is harmless to humans (3). The ribbed wing cases or ‘elytra’ are reddish-brown in colour, and the head and the pronotum are blackish and covered in short hairs. The fan-like antennae are longer in males than females (5). The larvae are fat white grubs that typically have a curved body shape and live in the soil. They can grown up to 40 to 46 mm in length (5). ‘Chafer’ is a Middle English word which is thought to mean ‘to gnaw’. The prefix ‘cock’ is often used to signal maleness, but it may be a simple term of familiarity (6). The larvae are often called rook-worms, as rooks are said to have a particular love of both adult and larval cockchafers (3).