THE SACRED BEETLE 



the mother Beetle compresses the outer layer of the pear 

 ■ — or nest — with all the strength of her stout, flat fore- 

 arms, to turn it into a protecting rind like the shell of 

 a nut. This helps to ward off the heat. In the hot 

 summer months the housewife puts her bread into a 

 closed pan to keep it fresh. The insect does the same in 

 its own fashion : by dint of pressure it covers the family 

 bread with a pan. 



I have watched the Sacred Beetle at work in her den, 

 so I know how she makes her pear-shaped nest. 



With the building-materials she has collected she 

 shuts herself up underground so as to give her whole at- 

 tention to the business in hand. The materials may be 

 obtained in two ways. As a rule, under natural condi- 

 tions, she kneads a ball in the usual way and rolls it to 

 a favourable spot. As it rolls along it hardens a little 

 on the surface and gathers a slight crust of earth and 

 tiny grains of sand, which is useful later on. Now and 

 then, however, the Beetle finds a suitable place for her 

 burrow quite close to the spot where she collects her 

 building-materials, and in that case she simply bundles 

 armfuls of stuff into the hole. The result is most strik- 

 ing. One day I see a shapeless lump disappear into the 

 burrow. Next day, or the day after, I visit the Beetle's 

 workshop and find the artist in front of her work. The 



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