The Fregate beetle is one of Colchester Zoo’s smaller and lesser known residents. They are found exclusively on the small island of Fregate making it also one of our most endangered species.

This is why our recent hatching of larva into beetles is even more exciting!

This is Colchester Zoo’s first success at breeding these rare beetles, with the reproductive cycle of 1 beetle taking around 9 months. This long process is broken up into stages, with the hatching from egg into larva taking up to 14 days before the larva goes through a total of 7 stages taking between 6-8 months to gradually transform into a fully formed beetle!

It takes these beetle just as long to fully transform as it does for a human to be born! 

Fully grown, these flightless beetles are dark brown in colour with long legs and usually live in large groups. Being restricted to one small island in the wild has made this beetle extremely vulnerable, as their island becomes inhabited by people and other species as well as the risk of natural disasters such as typhoons, all playing a part in making this species critically endangered.

Colchester Zoo is extremely pleased to now be a part of helping the Fregate beetle survive and we hope the success will continue into the future!