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- ›Water, Rove, Scarab, Long-horned, Leaf, and Snout Beetles
- ›Scarabaeiform Beetles
- ›Scarabs, Stag Beetles, and Allies
- ›Scarabs
- ›Dung Beetles
- ›Scarabaeini
True Dung Beetles
Scarabaeus
The genus Scarabaeus consists of a number of Afro-Eurasian dung beetle species, including the "sacred scarab beetle", Scarabaeus sacer and is the namesake of the tribe Scarabaeini, the family Scarabaeidae, the superfamily Scarabaeoidea and the infraorder Scarabaeiformia. These beetles feed exclusively on dung, which they accomplish by rolling a piece of dung some distance from where it was deposited, and burying it in order to feed on it underground. They also prepare food for their larvae by excavating an underground chamber, and filling it with balls that have eggs laid in them. The growing larva feeds upon the dung ball, pupates, and eventually emerges as an adult.
A "scarabaeus" is also a now outdated term (OED 2) for an object in the form of a scarab beetle in art. The scarab was a popular form of amulet in Ancient Egypt, and in ancient Greek art engraved gems were often carved as scarabs on the rest of the stone behind the main flattish face, which was used for sealing documents.
57 branches of this genus, most-observed first
Ateuchetus
subgenusAteuchetus
Scarabaeus
subgenusScarabaeus
Fynbos Dung Beetle
speciesScarabaeus convexus
Scarabaeus rusticus
speciesScarabaeus rusticus
Soutpansberg Dung Beetle
speciesScarabaeus schulzeae
Scarabaeus viator
speciesScarabaeus viator
Scarabaeus ambiguus
speciesScarabaeus ambiguus
Scarabaeus proboscideus
speciesScarabaeus proboscideus
Rugged Sandveld Dung Beetle
speciesScarabaeus rugosus
Scarabaeus galenus
speciesScarabaeus galenus
Scarabaeus bornemisszai
speciesScarabaeus bornemisszai
Scarabaeus caffer
speciesScarabaeus caffer
Scarabaeus vicinus
speciesScarabaeus vicinus
Scarabaeus bannuensis
speciesScarabaeus bannuensis
Scarabaeus geminogalenus
speciesScarabaeus geminogalenus
Scarabaeus zambesianus
speciesScarabaeus zambesianus
Scarabaeus goryi
speciesScarabaeus goryi
Scarabaeus radama
speciesScarabaeus radama
Scarabaeus deludens
speciesScarabaeus deludens
Scarabaeus hottentorum
speciesScarabaeus hottentorum
Scarabaeus interstitialis
speciesScarabaeus interstitialis
Scarabaeus plausibilis
speciesScarabaeus plausibilis
Scarabaeus westwoodi
speciesScarabaeus westwoodi
Scarabaeus ebenus
speciesScarabaeus ebenus
Scarabaeus suri
speciesScarabaeus suri
Scarabaeus cristatus
speciesScarabaeus cristatus
Scarabaeus isidis
speciesScarabaeus isidis
Scarabaeus babori
speciesScarabaeus babori
Scarabaeus catenatus
speciesScarabaeus catenatus
Scarabaeus basuto
speciesScarabaeus basuto
Scarabaeus viettei
speciesScarabaeus viettei
Scarabaeus sevoistra
speciesScarabaeus sevoistra
Scarabaeus cancer
speciesScarabaeus cancer
Scarabaeus furcatus
speciesScarabaeus furcatus
Scarabaeus prodigiosus
speciesScarabaeus prodigiosus
Scarabaeus costatus
speciesScarabaeus costatus
Scarabaeus proximus
speciesScarabaeus proximus
Scarabaeus cognatus
speciesScarabaeus cognatus
Scarabaeus subaeneus
speciesScarabaeus subaeneus
Scarabaeus paganus
speciesScarabaeus paganus
Scarabaeus gilleti
speciesScarabaeus gilleti
Scarabaeus sulcipennis
speciesScarabaeus sulcipennis
Scarabaeus laevistriatus
speciesScarabaeus laevistriatus
Scarabaeus namibicus
speciesScarabaeus namibicus
Scarabaeus clericus
speciesScarabaeus clericus
Scarabaeus kahalaricus
speciesScarabaeus kahalaricus
Scarabaeus natalensis
speciesScarabaeus natalensis
Scarabaeus savignyi
speciesScarabaeus savignyi
Scarabaeus zurstrasseni
speciesScarabaeus zurstrasseni
Scarabaeus intermedius
speciesScarabaeus intermedius
Scarabaeus palemo
speciesScarabaeus palemo
Scarabaeus krutai
speciesScarabaeus krutai
Scarabaeus funebris
speciesScarabaeus funebris
Scarabaeus alienus
speciesScarabaeus alienus
Scarabaeus piliventris
speciesScarabaeus piliventris
Scarabaeus heqvisti
speciesScarabaeus heqvisti
Scarabaeus rixosus
speciesScarabaeus rixosus
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
—
geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
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In the old herbals & bestiaries
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Scarabaeus in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 199919.