PRIVATE LIVES OF INSECTS. 509 



After the first furrow was completed, another was made 

 within it, and the earth was thrown into the first furrow ; then 

 he made a third furrow, but this was under the bird, so that I 

 could only see a bit of him now and then, and I could only 

 judge for a long time of what was going on by the heaving of 

 earth, which formed a little rampart round the bird. As the ram- 

 part rose, the bird sank. After three hours' incessant labour, 

 the beetle eraei'ged, crawled on the bird, and took a survey of 

 his work. Here he remained about an hour, still as death — he 

 did not stir hand or foot; he then dismounted, dived again 

 into the grave, and kept on pulling the bird down by the 

 feathers for half an hour: its own weight seemed to sink it but 

 very little. The earth then began heaving and rising all round ; 

 it was for all the world like a little earthquake : the feathers of 

 the bird were again pulled, and again the bird descended. At 

 last, after about three hours' more labour, he came up, mounted 

 on the bird, took a survey, and then dropped down to rest as 

 though dead, or suddenly fallen fast asleep. When sufficiently 

 rested, he roused himself, trod the bird firmly into its grave, 

 pulled it by the feathers this way and that way, and, having 

 settled it to his mind, began to shovel in the earth : this he 

 did in a very short time, by means of his broad head. He went 

 behind the rampart of earth, and pushed it into the grave with 

 amazing strength and dexterity, his head being bent downward 

 at first, and then the nose chucked up with a kind of jerk, 

 which sent the earth forwards. After the grave was thus filled 

 up, and the earth trodden in, it underwent another keen scru- 

 tiny all round, the bird being completely hidden ; he then made 

 a hole in the still loose earth, and having buried the bird, and 

 his own bride, next buried himself. 



The female burying beetle lays her eggs in the carcase of 

 the bird, in number proportioned to its size ; when this 

 operation is over, and the pair have eaten as much of the 

 savoury viand as they please, they make their way out, and 

 fly away in quest of further adventures. The eggs hatch in 

 two days, and produce flat, scaly grubs, which run about with 

 great activity. These grubs grow excessively fast, and very 

 soon consume all that their progenitors had left. As soon 

 as they are full grown, they leave off' eating, and, burrowing 

 deeper in the earth, change to chrysalises. The length of 

 time they remain in this state I don't know ; but when changed 



