Have you ever heard of a tumblebug? How about a dung beetle? (Tumblebug...dung beetle...they're both one and the same.) Do you know how the tumblebug or dung beetle got its name? Have you ever been fortunate enough to see one?
Here is a picture of the very first dung beetle I ever saw...
Here is a picture of the very first dung beetle I ever saw...
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| Dung Beetle (a.k.a Tumblebug) |
I was THRILLED to have been fortunate enough to see one!
Today I'm going to share an excerpt with you from Springtime on the Plains by Hal Borland, just one of many short stories found in a book that I recently finished called The Great North American Prairie - A Literary Field Guide edited by Sara St. Antoine.
Here is the part of the story where Mr. Borland mentions dung beetles (he calls them tumblebugs)...
"...I dismounted to watch an ant hill, and I saw two tumblebugs pushing each other around in the grass. They butted and rolled and nipped and got to their feet and butted each other again, until one of them drove the other off. The victor pursued a little way, then came back and began rolling the ball of dung over which they probably had been fighting. They were strange creatures with the mark of antiquity on them, though I didn't know then that they were close cousins of the ancient Egyptian scarabs. All I knew was that these big, dark, timeless looking beetles fashioned balls of cow manure three-quarters of an inch in diameter and rolled them from place to place, walking backward and rolling the balls with their hind legs. They laid eggs in the balls and the eggs hatched into grubs which ate their way out and eventually turned into beetles which laid their own eggs in other dung balls. It seemed to me that the way the birds did it, laying eggs in nests, eggs with shells on them and food inside, was much simpler."
How much fun was THAT??? 😄
I absolutely love Tallgrass Express String Band's music and own two of their CD's! To learn more about them, their music, or to see their concert schedule click HERE.
To learn more about dung beetles in general (a.k.a. tumblebugs) be sure and visit the Missouri Department of Conservation by clicking HERE.
Until next time...
~Rebecca
Recent and related posts that you might enjoy reading...
"...I dismounted to watch an ant hill, and I saw two tumblebugs pushing each other around in the grass. They butted and rolled and nipped and got to their feet and butted each other again, until one of them drove the other off. The victor pursued a little way, then came back and began rolling the ball of dung over which they probably had been fighting. They were strange creatures with the mark of antiquity on them, though I didn't know then that they were close cousins of the ancient Egyptian scarabs. All I knew was that these big, dark, timeless looking beetles fashioned balls of cow manure three-quarters of an inch in diameter and rolled them from place to place, walking backward and rolling the balls with their hind legs. They laid eggs in the balls and the eggs hatched into grubs which ate their way out and eventually turned into beetles which laid their own eggs in other dung balls. It seemed to me that the way the birds did it, laying eggs in nests, eggs with shells on them and food inside, was much simpler."
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| Dung Beetles Doing What They Do Best...Rolling Dung (Photo Credit) |
"I watched the tumblebug maneuver his ball to the edge of the bare space around the ant hill, and I watched the ants gather to repel the invader, who paid almost no attention to them. The tumblebug rolled his ball across the little clearing and into the grass beyond, the ants rubbed feelers in a conference as though telling each other that they had driven off a major threat to the colony, and everybody went back to work...
I think Mr. Borland did a fine job of explaining the life (and life cycle) of a dung beetle in just a short couple of paragraphs, don't you?
And, if you liked that, now you're in for a real treat!!!
While you're here, take time to enjoy this song that my friend, Annie Wilson, of Tallgrass Express String Band wrote about Dung Beetle Bill...
I think Mr. Borland did a fine job of explaining the life (and life cycle) of a dung beetle in just a short couple of paragraphs, don't you?
And, if you liked that, now you're in for a real treat!!!
While you're here, take time to enjoy this song that my friend, Annie Wilson, of Tallgrass Express String Band wrote about Dung Beetle Bill...
How much fun was THAT??? 😄
I absolutely love Tallgrass Express String Band's music and own two of their CD's! To learn more about them, their music, or to see their concert schedule click HERE.
To learn more about dung beetles in general (a.k.a. tumblebugs) be sure and visit the Missouri Department of Conservation by clicking HERE.
Until next time...
~Rebecca
Recent and related posts that you might enjoy reading...
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