SAM FANG
September in Chiang Mai means heavy
rain and at times gusty winds. It's also time for newly planted rice
fields to flourish while farmers rest and engage in an annual fling
with their "winged gladiators" _ rhinoceros beetles.
Thailand is famed for cock fights, bull fights and fish fights,
but not many people have seen a beetle fight, which involves a lot
of goading and teasing before action begins.
Every September these chestnut-brown insects with black shining
heads and bristled legs, converge on the North's forested hills to
mate. The males, with impressive horns on their foreheads, usually
outnumber the females.
As with males of most species when women are around, they fight.
When they get tangled up they become easy pickings for farmers and
hill dwellers who catch them for sale to local enthusiasts.
For fight fans, one of the best places to watch the action is
along Chiang Mai's Charoen Raj Road near Narawat Bridge in the
afternoon. Here you will see male beetles tied individually with
brightly coloured woollen threads on their horns. These "beetle
bridles" are pegged to debarked sugarcane sticks that serve as the
insects' food.
A dozen or more vendors will be selling beetles with accessories
such as goads and "arena sticks". Depending on size and appearance,
a prize specimen can fetch 30 to 60 baht.
Acclaimed champs can carry price tags of 200 to 600 baht each.
Recently caught beetles are stronger and better fighters; the
instinct to fight wanes as the days go by.
When two beetle handlers agree to a showdown, a soft branch is
used as the "arena". This special branch has an indent in the
centre, in which a female beetle is wedged. The scent of the female
spurs the males to action.
Each beetle-handler has a small wooden goad, which he will roll
on the branch to produce a drumming sound that enrages the male.
Once both handlers agree to release their beetles, the insects
are brought to close quarters, facing each other with the female in
between.
Both males will make a loud buzzing sound as they lock horns,
pushing and pulling each other. The horns are powerful pincers that
can even sever a beetle's head.
As they push each other, their bristled claws dig into the
branch, scarring it with tiny holes. Most of the action is strictly
push-and-pull, but occasionally one beetle will lift another into
the air and toss it from the branch to win the bout.
Most of the time, though, the loser simply runs away and the
victor claims the female - but just for a short spell before the
next fight.
Betting is common, with wagers fixed by silent gestures and nods
of the head, since of course gambling is illegal in Thailand.
Before anyone rushes to condemn such bug battles as unseemly,
it's worth noting that rhinoceros beetles are pests. After mating in
northern Thailand, they fly south and seek coconut and oil palm
trees to lay their eggs. Egg-laden females bore into the trunk near
the crown of a tree, and the larvae feed on the soft pulp, sometimes
killing the tree.
Thus, the northern farmers who catch these beetles are doing
their southern counterparts a favour, preventing the destruction of
coconut and oil palm trees that are important economic plants in the
South.
The beetles appear from late August to late September after rice
planting is over. Beetle-catchers climb lofty heights to snag the
insects near the tops of trees. After catching them, they feed the
beetles on sugarcane for three days before selling them as "winged
gladiators".
Potential fighters are selected on the basis of strong, long
horns, legs and sturdy thorax. They are also judged by the loudness
of their buzzing when the goad is rolled on their horns.
The best are tied to debarked sugarcane sticks and wrapped with
soft bark from banana trees during transport. Those not selected for
careers in the ring are sold as "pets" to children and are
transported in wooden
boxes. |