The Sacred Beetle in Captivity 



this, but It is strengthening and very 

 nutritious. The pap of earhest infancy is 

 followed by the more solid food given to 

 the weaned nurseling, a sort of paste that 

 stands midway between the exquisitely 

 delicate fare at the start and the coarse 

 provisions at the finish. There is a thick 

 layer of it, enough to turn the infant into 

 a sturdy youngster. But now for the strong 

 comes strong meat: barley-bread with its 

 husks, that is to say, natural droppings full 

 of sharp bits of hay. Of this the larva has 

 enough and to spare; and, when it has at- 

 tained its full growth, there remains an en- 

 closing layer. The capacity of the dwelling 

 has increased with the growth of the oc- 

 cupant, fed on the very substance of the 

 walls; the original little cell with the very 

 thick walls is now a big cell with walls only 

 a few millimetres in thickness; the inner 

 layers have become larva, nymph or Beetle, 

 according to the period. Lastly, the ball 

 itself is a stout shell, protecting within its 

 spacious interior the mysterious processes of 

 the metamorphosis. 



I can go no farther, for lack of observa- 

 tions; my records of the birth of the Sacred 

 Beetle stop short at the egg. I have not seen 

 the larva, which however is known and is 



53 



