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Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

Did you know the Goliath beetle is one of the largest insects on Earth? Found in the tropical forests of Africa, this beetle can weigh up to 100 grams and grow nearly 4 inches long! Its striking appearance and strength make it a true giant of the insect world. Fun Fact: These beetles are so strong they can carry up to 850 times their own weight!

diabolical ironclad beetle

The diabolical ironclad beetle is like a tiny tank on six legs.

This insect’s rugged exoskeleton is so tough that the beetle can survive getting run over by cars, and many would-be predators don’t stand a chance of cracking one open. Phloeodes diabolicus is basically nature’s jawbreaker.

Analyses of microscope images, 3-D printed models and computer simulations of the beetle’s armor have now revealed the secrets to its strength. Tightly interlocked and impact-absorbing structures that connect pieces of the beetle’s exoskeleton help it survive enormous crushing forces, researchers report in the Oct. 22 Nature. Those features could inspire new, sturdier designs for things such as body armor, buildings, bridges and vehicles.

The diabolical ironclad beetle, which dwells in desert regions of western North America, has a distinctly hard-to-squish shape. “Unlike a stink beetle, or a Namibian beetle, which is more rounded … it’s low to the ground [and] it’s flat on top,” says David Kisailus, a materials scientist at the University of California, Irvine. In compression experiments, Kisailus and colleagues found that the beetle could withstand around 39,000 times its own body weight. That would be like a person shouldering a stack of about 40 M1 Abrams battle tanks.

Chrysina limbata

Chrysina limbata is a species of scarab beetle found only in mid-altitude forests in Costa Rica and western Panama. It is in the genus Chrysina, in the subfamily Rutelinae (shining leaf chafers). It is notable for its metallic reflective silver color.

Adult C. limbata measure between 24 and 29 mm (0.94–1.14 in) in length. They have a reflective silver metallic appearance which is achieved through thin film interference within layers of chitin. These layers of the chitin coating are chirped (in layers of differing thicknesses), forming a complex multilayer as each layer decreases in depth; as the thickness changes, so too does the optical path-length. Each chirped layer is tuned to a different wavelength of light. The multilayer found on C. limbata reflects close to 97% of light across the visible wavelength range.

Physicist William E. Vargas believes that the metallic appearance may act like water, appearing only as a bright spot to predators. The rain forest of Costa Rica where C. limbata lives has water suspended from leaves at ground level. Light is refracted in different directions, and it allows metallic beetles to fool predators.