The common cockchafer belongs to the same family as dung beetles [Scarabaeidae]. It is 25 to 30 mm long with a heavy-set bulging body. The wing cases are reddish-brown, and the head and the first thoracic segment are blackish and covered with short hairs. The head is quite small and bears a couple of fan-like antennae. Those of males are branched with seven leaf-like plates. They are wider and twofold bigger than that of females, possessing only six plates.
Cockchafers are clumsy fliers and produce a very distinctive, alarmingly loud buzzing noise. Thus, cockchafers are often heard before they are seen.
The photo of the common cockchafer was captured on a hiking trail in the Kaiserstuhl (lit. ‘Emperor’s Chair’).
The Kaiserstuhl is a range of hills in southwest Germany with a maximum height of 557 meters. It is of volcanic origin. Within the Upper Rhine Plain it is situated close to the city of Freiburg.