Must mention this. Took a class on a bug hunt in their school grounds today in the middle of Swindon in a really seriously built up area and guess what we found......a male Minotaur Beetle, Typhaeus typhoeus. So chuffed for the children! This little chap just happened to fly down onto the playground and was scooped up by a pair of seriously pleased with themselves little girls. We all crowded round and had a great time looking at him. None of the children could believe a beetle as cool as this even lived in the UK! He is a Dor Beetle with three horns on his thorax and big strong front legs for digging. They bury rabbit droppings in little burrows that they dig and then lay an egg, and the dropping is food for their larvae while they develop. We let him get on his way and the two girls were hailed as the heroines of the day. Great result!!
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