The Sacred Beetle: the Ball 



any of the workers who have hurried to the 

 same heap. Thus is envy kindled; thus it 

 becomes imperative to retire to a distance, 

 to avoid being robbed. This speedy retreat 

 demands a convenient means of transport; 

 and that is obtained by the spherical form 

 given to the materials collected. 



Here is the conclusion, unexpected but 

 very logical and I would even say obvious: 

 the Sacred Beetle shapes his provisions into 

 a ball because he is an ardent lover of the 

 sun. The various Dung-beetles who work 

 in broad daylight, the Gymnopleuri and 

 Sisyphi of my district, conform to the same 

 mechanical principle: they all know the 

 advantages of a sphere, the best rolling- 

 apparatus; they all practise the art of pill- 

 making. The other Dung-beetles, who 

 work in the dark, do nothing of the kind: 

 their accumulations of food are shapeless. 



Life in the vivarium supplies us with some 

 other facts which are not undeserving of the 

 commentator's attention. We have said 

 that, when fresh provisions are supplied, the 

 Sacred Beetles who are roaming about come 

 running up eagerly to the smoking fare. 

 The rich effluvia also speedily attract those 

 who are slumbering In their burrows. Little 

 mounds of sand pop up here and there, crack- 

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