Cockchafers, along with\u00a0stag beetles,\u00a0dung beetles, dor beetles and scarabs, have the last three to seven segments of their antennae expanded into flat, plate-like leaves, which sit in a distinctive fan-like arrangement.<\/p>\n
Antennae are the olfactory sense organs of insects, and this formation greatly increases the surface area available for the chemosensors.<\/p>\n
Insects usually need to sniff out two things \u2013 food sources and mates.<\/p>\n
In dung beetles, male and female antennae are very similar, suggesting that both are attracted to faecal odours, so can locate a mate at a pat.<\/p>\n
Male and female cockchafers may use some subtle chemical signal from decay, or particular roots, to co-ordinate a rendezvous, but the fact that males have seven club segments and females only six suggests that males also respond to female pheromone scents.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n