What the dickens is this?!?!?!?!?!

[bussinspain]

Found this grub whilst moving pine-needles. We have a HUGE pile of pine-needles that have been sitting and rotting down for a couple of years - wonderful needle-mold at the bottom. Can anyone identify it before I give it to the chickens please? It is about 8cms long! And very fat, 6 legs.

[roitelet]

Could be a stag beetle larvae, put it somewhere where there is a similar habitat to continue growing. They are similar but larger than a cockchaffer grub which should be fed to the chickens. Stag beetles are becoming increasingly rare.

[scarey55]

Fairly sure it is a cock chafer grub. I don't know about whether or not you can give it to the chickens but I'm pretty sure that's what it is.

[scarey55]

Ah, perhaps not then, I didn't look at the size first. Let's hope it is a stag beetle, they are wonderful creatures.

[Thelma Sanders]

If it's less than 5 cm, I'd say it's a cockchafer - stag beetles tend to grow bigger than that.

[bussinspain]

It's ENORMOUS!!!!!!!!!! Googled stag beetle grubs images and yes it's one of those. I will put it back in the heap but at the other end, which I won't be disturbing until next year. I don't like to despatch (or dispatch) anything until I am sure if it's a bad guy/gal.

[Martin H]

Did you google cockchafer grub too? They are remarkably similar except a bit smaller - the size of the one in your picture in fact, when fully grown.

[bussinspain]

It has now been put back in the pine needle heap to finish it's transformation.

[dilettante]

Wow, you are so lucky! I think I would hold onto it and keep it until it's changed, I would love to see a stag beetle. Having said that, I did find an enormous pupae in the garden before, but I just left it. If only I'd have thought. Ah well.

[bussinspain]

I would rather it transformed in it's natural environment. It is now "snug as a bug in a pine needle heap". A few months ago I found about 20-30 of similar looking bugs, but a bit smaller and I gave them to the chickens. About 3 days later we were inundated with eggs!!!!!!!!!! Must have been the extra protein.

[Nicos]

Well worth the sacrifice in this case then