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Dieren en planten

Winged insects   Beetles   Ground beetles   Whirligig beetles   Water tiger   Ladybug   Scarab beetles   
  • Dut: Bladsprietkever (mestkever)
  • Lat: Scarabaeidae
  • Eng: Scarab beetle (dung beetle, chafer)
  • Dui: Blatthornkäfer
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Dung beetle, Foto Fitis, www.fotofitis.nl

Scarab beetles

Scarab beetles are notable herbivores active during the day. The larvae live in the ground and feed upon plant roots. These young insects are known as white grub. The cockchafer (also known as the maybug) is the most common scarab beetle. A few other species are characteristic for the dunes. The garden chafer (Phylloperta horticola) is found often on burnet roses. Sometimes in the month of June, these insects eat all the leaves of the plant. The large pine chafer is a rare species found in the pine woods along the coast.

  • Ball rolling

    Dung beetles also belong to this category. These beetles make a ball from dung for feeding their larvae. The male and female work together in order to make the ball. Although ... the male rolls the most while the female tags along. They look for a soft spot in the ground for digging a tunnel. This is where they mate and finish preparing the ball. Afterwards, the female lays its eggs in the ball. The larvae live in the ground off of the dung, plant roots or plant remnants.

    This feature of the scarab beetles was already evident in the days of Ancient Egypt. These animals understand what's important in life, namely recycling valuable materials. The Egyptians have declared their scarab beetle as sacred. To this very day, it is custom in Egypt to give each other an image of the scarab as a way of wishing one good luck.