Despite the broad wingspans of swallowtails and hawkmoths, Britain's largest flying insect is likely a beetle.
There are three contenders for the title of Britain's biggest flying insect: the stag beetle, great silver diving beetle and sawyer beetle.
These large, impressive insects all make a clockwork model- aeroplane buzz when they take to the air of a warm summer evening, and the approach of any is enough to make you duck.
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Beetles are renowned for their diversity, and one of their secrets is the ability to fold their delicate wings, origami-style, under tough, protective wingcases so they can push out of sight into the herbage, among the root thatch or under logs.
Though each is about 45-55mm long in the body, once the spring-loaded wings are unfolded, they can have a span approaching 130mm. Large dragonflies also reach this, but are famously slim and slight in comparison.
