The Spanish Copris: the Mother 



the shape least susceptible to evaporation. 

 Very different from the Sacred Beetle in 

 habits and structure but exposed to the same 

 dangers in her larval state, the Copris, in 

 order to ward off the peril, adopts the prin- 

 ciples of the great pill-roller, principles whose 

 surpassing wisdom we have already made 

 manifest. 



I would ask the philosophers to ponder 

 upon these five manufacturers of preserved 

 meats and the numerous rivals which they 

 doubtless possess in other climes. I sub- 

 mit to them these Inventors of the largest 

 possible box with the smallest possible 

 surface for provisions liable to dry; and I 

 ask them how such logical inspirations and 

 so much rational foresight can take birth in 

 the obscure brain of the lower orders of crea- 

 tion. 



Let us come down to plain facts. The 

 Copris' pill is a more or less pronounced 

 ovoid, sometimes differing but slightly from 

 a sphere in shape. It is not quite so pretty 

 as the work of the Gymnopleurus, which is 

 very nearly pear-shaped, or at least reminds 

 one of a bird's egg, notably a Sparrow's, be- 

 cause of the similarity in size. The Copris' 

 work is more like the egg of a nocturnal bird 



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