We made this stop motion film clip of a dung beetle on the Serengeti Plains while stopped for a bush breakfast. The beetle actually took about 3 times as long to roll the ball as the clip lasts – an amazing feat of dedication to the beetle’s future offspring.
It’s amazing the way the beetle seems to measure the size of the ball and the degree of curvature – ending up with a tennis ball sized near spherical end product!
Fun Facts about Dung Beetles
- Dung beetles are found on all continents except for Antarctica.
- It is estimated that there are about 7000 species of dung beetles in the world with 800 in South Africa. There appears to be little research into the number of dung beetles in the Maasai-Mara ecosystem or wider Kenya/Tanzania.
- In the UK, around 60 species of dung beetles are estimated to save the UK economy £367 million per annum (2015 estimate)!
- Dung beetles can roll up to 50 times their weight making them the strongest insect in the world.
- These interesting beetles fly around in search of manure deposits, or pats, from herbivores like cows and elephants – in this case zebra. With long flight wings folded under hardened outer wings (elytra) most dung beetles are strong fliers and can travel several miles in search of the perfect dung pat. Using specialised antennae, they can catch a whiff of dung from the air. To do this they fly backwards and forwards across the wind until they pick up scent. Once the scent is located they follow the odour upwind direct to the source landing directly onto or near the target.
- Dung beetles come in a variety of colours, from dull and glossy black to metallic green and red.
- Of the hundreds of different species of ‘dung beetle’ Africa’s largest is the Heliocopris colossus, measuring up to 50 mm in length, while one of the smallest, Drepanoceros laticollis, is only around 5 mm.