By Jimmy Conway
The dung beetle is perhaps one of the most humble creatures on the planet; they run an extensive waste removal service and demand nothing in return. It’s a wonder these lovable little beetles are not more appreciated by modern humans. Ancient Egyptians had a god with the face of a dung beetle that was said to roll the sun across the sky as if it was a big ball of flaming scat. Saint Ambrose even compared the resurrection of Jesus to the noble dung beetle; sadly these guys won’t rise again three days after being pinned in a collection.
By evolving a palate for a highly under utilized and over abundant resource, this group of beetles has become incredibly successful across the globe. You might think a coprophagous organism (fancy word for poo-eater) wouldn’t be too picky about its meals, but you would be wrong. It seems these connoisseurs of crap prefer their meals “fresh from the oven”, and will lose interest as the feces age. They also take preference to different animal products, especially enjoying the bowel movements of omnivores. However, when other beetles are also after the best nuggets of smelly gold, it becomes important to be able to get your portion of the booty to a distant place where it will be safe from stool stealers.
Dung beetles have a ridiculously impressive form of finding direction using the sun, the moon, and the stars, truly making them masters of the universe. By exploiting polarized light created by the earth’s atmosphere, they can keep rolling in the same path whether it is day or night. Some have even been shown to use the specific section of stars in the night sky that makes up what we see of the Milky Way galaxy. It’s fair to say these insects have been using the celestial bodies of our galaxy since long before we figured out the earth is not the center of the universe. I like to imagine a beetle rolling their dung ball past Copernicus as he forms the heliocentric model and thinking, “Should I stop to help the poor stupid ape? No, I’ve got my own $### to deal with, they’ll figure it out eventually.”
If having the intelligence of our species questioned by a beetle that eats poop puts you down, then feel free to rejoice in the fact there is a plant that fools dung beetles into planting it’s seeds. Take that, insects! Not so smart now, are you? The plant C. argenteum produces seeds that not only mimic the size and coloration of antelope droppings, but also release compounds that resemble the smell of a deliciously fresh ball of feces. Needless to say, the beetles take the bait and run, or roll, with it and bury the seeds unwittingly increasing the fitness of the plant while reducing their own. Usually humans are tricked into investing in pieces of crap, dung beetles on the other hand can be tricked into investing in non-fecal rip-offs.
We should have more adoration for these little disposal experts; they remove waste, improve soil structure and nutrients, and help disperse some plant species seeds even if it is unknowingly. Not to mention we could learn a thing or two from them about directions, I can’t even stay on course with help from Siri. Plus, they make the best analogy for staying positive when life hands you lemons, or feces for that matter. So, next time you find yourself looking up at the stars searching for answers to life’s greatest questions, take a moment to think like Saint Ambrose and ask yourself, “What would dung beetles do?”
Sites used:
http://www.nature.com/articles/nplants2015141
http://scitation.aip.org/content/aip/proceeding/aipcp/10.1063/1.4931190
http://www.pnas.org/content/112/36/11395.full#xref-ref-16-1
The dung beetle is perhaps one of the most humble creatures on the planet; they run an extensive waste removal service and demand nothing in return. It’s a wonder these lovable little beetles are not more appreciated by modern humans. Ancient Egyptians had a god with the face of a dung beetle that was said to roll the sun across the sky as if it was a big ball of flaming scat. Saint Ambrose even compared the resurrection of Jesus to the noble dung beetle; sadly these guys won’t rise again three days after being pinned in a collection.
By evolving a palate for a highly under utilized and over abundant resource, this group of beetles has become incredibly successful across the globe. You might think a coprophagous organism (fancy word for poo-eater) wouldn’t be too picky about its meals, but you would be wrong. It seems these connoisseurs of crap prefer their meals “fresh from the oven”, and will lose interest as the feces age. They also take preference to different animal products, especially enjoying the bowel movements of omnivores. However, when other beetles are also after the best nuggets of smelly gold, it becomes important to be able to get your portion of the booty to a distant place where it will be safe from stool stealers.
Dung beetles have a ridiculously impressive form of finding direction using the sun, the moon, and the stars, truly making them masters of the universe. By exploiting polarized light created by the earth’s atmosphere, they can keep rolling in the same path whether it is day or night. Some have even been shown to use the specific section of stars in the night sky that makes up what we see of the Milky Way galaxy. It’s fair to say these insects have been using the celestial bodies of our galaxy since long before we figured out the earth is not the center of the universe. I like to imagine a beetle rolling their dung ball past Copernicus as he forms the heliocentric model and thinking, “Should I stop to help the poor stupid ape? No, I’ve got my own $### to deal with, they’ll figure it out eventually.”
If having the intelligence of our species questioned by a beetle that eats poop puts you down, then feel free to rejoice in the fact there is a plant that fools dung beetles into planting it’s seeds. Take that, insects! Not so smart now, are you? The plant C. argenteum produces seeds that not only mimic the size and coloration of antelope droppings, but also release compounds that resemble the smell of a deliciously fresh ball of feces. Needless to say, the beetles take the bait and run, or roll, with it and bury the seeds unwittingly increasing the fitness of the plant while reducing their own. Usually humans are tricked into investing in pieces of crap, dung beetles on the other hand can be tricked into investing in non-fecal rip-offs.
We should have more adoration for these little disposal experts; they remove waste, improve soil structure and nutrients, and help disperse some plant species seeds even if it is unknowingly. Not to mention we could learn a thing or two from them about directions, I can’t even stay on course with help from Siri. Plus, they make the best analogy for staying positive when life hands you lemons, or feces for that matter. So, next time you find yourself looking up at the stars searching for answers to life’s greatest questions, take a moment to think like Saint Ambrose and ask yourself, “What would dung beetles do?”
Sites used:
http://www.nature.com/articles/nplants2015141
http://scitation.aip.org/content/aip/proceeding/aipcp/10.1063/1.4931190
http://www.pnas.org/content/112/36/11395.full#xref-ref-16-1