tumblebugs
Ball-pushing beetles
Tumblebugs are dung beetles, so called because of their habit of rolling balls of animal dung across the ground.
The beetles shape the dung into spheres and roll them to suitable locations where they bury them as food stores or sites for laying eggs.
The image of these industrious insects laboriously tumbling their prized cargo has made them symbols of persistence and resourcefulness in various cultures.
We watched tumblebugs at work near the horse pasture.
Beetle held sacred anciently
- coleopteraOrder containing beetles
- exoskeletonExternal skeletal structure
- antennaeSensory appendages on insects
- mandiblesPaired arthropod mouthparts
chitin · thorax · abdomen · larvae · instar · metamorphosis · arthropod · invertebrate
Organism breaking down corpses
- detritivoreEats dead organic material
- humusDecayed organic soil matter
- microhabitatSmall distinct living area
- symbiosisInterspecies biological interdependence
Determining position and course
- competitionStruggle for supremacy
- tunnelingDigging underground passages
- nestingMaking a dwelling
- burialPlacing deceased underground
Relating to the pharaohs' land
- rebirthSpiritual or physical regeneration
- resurrectionRevival from death
- amuletWorn protective token
- hieroglyphAncient Egyptian picture-writing symbol
scarab
Beetle held sacred anciently
- coleopteraOrder containing beetles
- exoskeletonExternal skeletal structure
- antennaeSensory appendages on insects
mandibles · chitin · thorax · abdomen · larvae · instar · metamorphosis · arthropod · invertebrate · tunneler
decomposer
Organism breaking down corpses
- detritivoreEats dead organic material
- humusDecayed organic soil matter
- microhabitatSmall distinct living area
symbiosis · biodiversity · savanna · pastureland · rangeland
navigation
Determining position and course
- competitionStruggle for supremacy
- tunnelingDigging underground passages
- nestingMaking a dwelling
Egyptian
Relating to the pharaohs' land
- rebirthSpiritual or physical regeneration
- resurrectionRevival from death
- amuletWorn protective token
hieroglyph · mythology · afterlife · transformation · renewal
tumblebugswood-boring beetles
Insects whose larvae tunnel through timber