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Gadagkar, R., 2020. More Fun Than Fun: Dung Beetles, the Milky Way and the Marvels of Animal Navigation. The Wire Science.

Gadagkar, R Gadagkar, R., 2020. More Fun Than Fun: Dung Beetles, the Milky Way and the Marvels of Animal Navigation. The Wire Science. UNSPECIFIED.

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Abstract

Nothing is wasted in nature, not even poop. The faecal matter produced by all the planet’s animals put together is an enormous resource that makes life possible for innumerable other creatures. Many species depend entirely on this one resource for their sustenance. Perhaps the most famous poop lovers are the dung beetles – some 6,000 species. Most dung beetles dig a tunnel from their nest to piles of dung, travel back-and-forth underground, and use the dung as food for themselves and their young. Some of them inhabit dung wherever they find it. Some make impressive round balls of the dung and roll it back to their nests. It is these ball-rollers that have caught the imagination of people throughout history. Their conspicuous above-ground activity, impressive skills at making dung-balls and even more impressive art of rolling balls larger than themselves across long distances (by beetle standards) probably account for their popularity. I can testify from personal experience that it is impossible not to be spell-bound when watching them work.

Item Type: Other
Department/Centre: Division of Biological Sciences > Centre for Ecological Sciences
Date Deposited: 18 Mar 2021 09:36
Last Modified: 02 Jun 2022 07:03
URI: https://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/68412

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