Commissioned by the Manawatu Art Gallery Society, using bequest funds from the estate of Palmerston North citizen Gertrude Raikes.

The giant beetles crawling over the walls of Te Manawa are made from painted bronze, the three Batocera Longhorns are modelled on a species found in Queensland, Australia, and the Goliath beetle is modelled on an African species. The artist chose these beetles, and their relative sizes, for dramatic impact.