The Burying-Beetles: Experiments 



trachian is not indispensable; a Mole will 

 serve as well or even better. With a liga- 

 ment of raffia I fix him, by his hind-legs, to a 

 twig which I plant vertically in the ground, 

 inserting it to no great depth. The creature 

 hangs plumb against the gibbet, its head and 

 shoulders making ample contact with the 

 soil. 



The grave-diggers set to work beneath the 

 part which lies along the ground, at the very 

 foot of the stake; they dig a funnel into 

 which the Mole's muzzle, head and neck sink 

 little by little. The gibbet becomes uprooted 

 as they descend and ends by falling, dragged 

 over by the weight of its heavy burden. I 

 am assisting at the spectacle of the overturned 

 stake, one of the most astonishing feats of 

 reason with which the insect has ever been 

 credited. 



This, for one who is considering the pro- 

 blem of instinct, is an exciting moment. But 

 let us beware of forming conclusions just 

 yet; we might be in too great a hurry. Let 

 us first ask ourselves whether the fall of the 

 stake was intentional or accidental. Did 

 the Necrophori lay it bare with the express 

 purpose of making it fall? Or did they, on 

 the contrary, dig at its base solely in order 

 to bury that part of the Mole which lay on 

 335 



