The Sacred Beetle and Others 



larva, but not enough for two. An excep- 

 tion must be made with respect to the Broad- 

 necked Scarab, who brings up her family 

 very frugally and divides her rolling booty 

 into two modest portions. 



The others are obliged to dig a special 

 burrow for each egg. When everything is 

 In order in the new establishment — and this 

 does not take long — they leave the under- 

 ground vault and go off somewhere else, 

 wherever chance may lead them, to begin 

 their pill-rolling, excavating and egg-laying 

 once more. With these nomadic habits, 

 any prolonged supervision on the mother's 

 part becomes impossible. 



The Scarab suffers by it. Her pear, which 

 is magnificently regular at the outset, soon 

 shows cracks and becomes scaly and swollen. 

 Various cryptogams invade it and under- 

 mine it; the material expands and the result- 

 ant splitting causes the pear to lose its shape. 

 W^e have seen how the grub combats these 

 troubles. 



The Copris has other ways. She does not 

 roll her stores from a distance; she ware- 

 houses them on the spot, bit by bit, which 

 enables her to accumulate in a single burrow 

 enough to satisfy all her brood. As there 

 is no need for further expeditions, the mother 



204 



