THE SPANISH COPRIS 73 



be done. Towards the end of the second day, however, 

 the globe is pronounced right and proper. The mother 

 climbs to the dome of her edifice and there, still by 

 simple pressure, hollows out a shallow crater. In this 

 basin the egg is laid. 



Then, with extreme caution, with a delicacy that is 

 most surprising in such rough tools, the lips of the crater 

 are brought together so as to form a vaulted roof over 

 the egg. The mother slowly turns, rakes a little, draws 



FIG. 6. The Spanish Copris's pill FIG. 7. The Spanish Copris's 



pill : section showing the 

 hatching - chamber and the 



dug out cupwise to receive the pill : section showing the 



and 



the material upwards and finishes the closing. This is the 

 most ticklish work of all. A careless pressure, a miscalcu- 

 lated thrust might easily jeopardize the life of the germ 

 under its slender ceiling. 



From time to time, the work of closing is suspended. 

 The mother, motionless, with lowered forehead, seems to 

 auscultate the underlying cavity, to listen to what is 

 happening within. All's well, it seems ; and the patient 

 labour is resumed : a fine scraping of the sides towards 



10 



