08 Nov, 2007

Dung beetles scrabble around in fresh zebra droppings, some fiercely protecting their newly formed dung balls while others pair off and co-operate in rolling their balls away.

While watching a small herd of zebras in the Blyde Canyon, Mpumalanga, South Africa today, we were drawn to the droppings they had left behind. There, a different world filled with the activity of small creatures unfolded.

A number of dung beetles, members of the scarab family and among nature’s cleaners and recyclers, were scrabbling about in the fresh dung.

There are more than 5000 species of dung beetle. Most of them are darkish in colour but there are also many that show striking metallic reds and greens.

The beetles use their keen sense of smell to locate the dung, and they serve an important function in nutrient cycling and soil structure.

Some of them dig holes beneath the dung heap where they lay their eggs, while others form brood balls of dung which they roll away from the dung heap and bury in soft soil.

They may lay their eggs before burying the ball, but in some cases the male and female go underground with the brood ball, where they mate and the female then lays her eggs. She stays underground and cares for the grubs until the adult insects emerge.

The scarab or dung beetle is built like a sort of miniature bulldozer, with remarkable strength for its size, and equipped physically for its task in any environment. They may have horns, shovels or scoops on their heads, hairs to facilitate movement in desert sand, and toothed legs for gripping and rolling of dung balls.

– by Paul Myburgh, Earth-Touch crew, © Earth-Touch

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