The amusing dung beetle

Dung beetles belong to the scarab beetle family which also includes the rhinoceros beetle (buqarn kbir), the barbary bugs (busuf) and the emerald chafer (għawwar dehbi).

About 33 species of scarabs are found locally. One species is the dung roller, known in Maltese as the ħanfusa tad-demel. This species makes a ball out of dung and then rolls it in a straight line to a spot where it will bury it in the soil.

Watching a dung beetle travelling with a dung ball can be quite entertaining. The journey starts with the beetle head down on its two front legs and then walking backwards while rolling the ball with its hind legs.

The journey usually takes the form of an obstacle race that can include seemingly insurmountable vegetation, pools of rainwater and large stones. To make the journey even more hazardous, other dung beetles start appearing on the scene as if out of nowhere, all trying to take away the ball from the original owner.

This species is said to be scarce in the Maltese countryside but while photographing one recently, another five appeared, showing that at least in some parts of the countryside they can be relatively common.

Dung beetles play an important role in the countryside. They help to recycle nutrients and make them available for plants. They also clear cattle-grazing areas of dung which would otherwise attract flies that can carry disease.

Several species of dung beetle from South Africa and Europe were introduced in Australia to improve cattle pastures.

Other species of dung beetle can be found in the Maltese countryside. The horned dung beetle, known in Maltese as ħanfusa barri tad-demel, is smaller and has a pair of long horns on its head.

This article was published in The Times on 20 March 2013.

The scarab beetles

Some days ago I found several beetles along the water’s edge at Mellieha Bay. Several more were floating on the water. 

All were dead except for a couple which I collected and moved to a safer place. 

These beetles, like many other insects are attracted to light and they must have been confused by some lights after having emerged from their cocoon and fell in the sea.

The beetles belonged to a very common species of the scarab family. Like many members of this family it does not have a common English name and is known as a scarab beetle.

 In Maltese most beetles are known as ħanfus. Like every identified plant and animal it has a unique scientific name - Phyllognathus excavatus. The males of this species have a structure on their head that resembles the horn of a rhinoceros. There are other scarab beetles with such a horn on their head which are popularly known as rhinoceros beetles.

At this time of the year it is the most common scarab beetle. It is found throughout the Mediterranean to the as to Iran and Crimea and in Senegal.

The scarab beetle family consists of over 30,000 species. Many of these beetles have bright metallic colours ranging in size from 1.5 to 160 mm. The larvae are soft bodied pale yellow or white grubs. 

Most live underground or under leaves away from sunlight. The majority are scavengers and many species live on dung, dead animals or decaying vegetation.

One of the best known species of scarab is the dung beetle which was revered as sacred in ancient Egypt. Dung beetles collect dung which they shape into the shape of a ball and then roll to an underground nest. They lay eggs in it so that on hatching the larvae find a readily available rich source of food. 

This article was published in The Times on 30.09.2010