Bombardier beetle

Content

1 What does an insect look like?
2 Lifestyle
3 Protection mechanism
4 Breeding

: Bombardier beetle

: Beetle lifestyle

Every living creature, be it a small insect or a giant animal, is endowed not only with a peculiar appearance, but also with the ability to protect itself at the moment of danger. A striking example of this fact is the bombardier beetle. On the peculiarities of lifestyle, body structure and defense mechanism of the beetle, this article will tell.

What does an insect look like?

The bombardier beetle is a representative of the subfamily Paussinae (less studied group) or Brachininae (the most studied and numerous group), which belong to ground beetles. Insects live almost everywhere, with the exception of areas of Antarctica.

The bombardier beetle has no attractive appearance:

the oblong form of the body reaches a length of 3 cm and has a red color;
the wings of the insect are protected by a dense shell, on top are elytra, painted in brown, dark blue or dark green;
the back of some scorers is decorated with a pattern contrasting from round spots.

Most of the representatives of this family do not know how to fly, but they very quickly move at the expense of three pairs of symmetrically located legs. Limbs and chest insect red tones. The head is also bright and has segmented whiskers up to 8 mm long. Color of this type is evidence of the predatory nature of individuals of this species (below is the beetle of the photo scorer).

Bombardier beetle

Lifestyle

The activity of the bombardier beetle manifests at night, during the day trying to hide in the shelter: under stones, logs, various snags. He has to lead such a way of life in order not to become a victim of birds. There are representatives of Brachininae and Paussinae groups. Food for them are insect larvae, earthworms, they do not disdain carrion.

Interesting!
In order to take off, the beetle takes some time to release its wings, which greatly increases the risk of becoming a victim of the enemy.In such situations, the instinct of self-preservation works in an insect: its own chemical weapons come to the rescue.

Protection mechanism

The ability to defend itself is the main feature of the insect. At the moment of danger, the bombardier beetle squirts a jet of a mixture of poisonous components at the enemy. A burning liquid is not released once. The number of consecutive emissions may be from 4 to 9 pieces, and their speed up to 10 m / s. Beetles that did not use their defense mechanism earlier can make about three dozen shots in a row.

The protective system of the beetle is located on the last segments of the abdomen. A pair of symmetrically located endocrine glands secrete a burning mixture, which includes hydroquinone and hydrogen peroxide. These chemical elements are stored in a large reservoir that is located in the abdomen of the insect.

Beetle lifestyle

At the moment of threat the beetle cuts its muscles. This helps push the contents of the tank into a special chamber. Its walls are lined with cells capable of producing oxidative enzymes (catalase and peroxidase). The reaction of all these components contributes to the formation of free oxygen and heat.As a result, at the time of release of a burning liquid, you can hear the clap and even watch the haze.

A surprising feature of the “tool” is its ability to extend and bend in the necessary direction, which makes it possible to attack the enemy in different directions. So having sent the "gun" towards the enemy, the scorer releases a portion of the caustic mixture, the temperature of which is close to 100 degrees.

This method allows the scorer to defend himself against ants, spiders, praying mantis and even against his relatives, for whom he serves as a favorite delicacy. Almost instant death awaits the fired enemy. Birds, frogs and lizards will not refuse to eat ground beetles also. However, having received quite noticeable burns, they no longer dare to attack the enemy again.

Important!
If you take the scorer with your bare hands, then the probability of getting a very painful skin burn is great. Not the best option to consider this beetle at close range. A jet entering the eye may even cause vision loss.

Breeding

After mating, the female begins to roll small balls from the ground into which she lays eggs (one soil ball is calculated for one egg).Such a similarity of spheres will serve as a refuge for the development of the larvae.

Of interest is also the process of pupation of the larvae that have emerged into the world. Since ground beetles are predators, their larvae lead a parasitic lifestyle. For feeding and growth, young offspring use pupae of other insects, eating away their insides. In most cases, bearfish suffer from this. The empty chitinous cocoon of the bombardier larvae is used as a new dwelling, where, as a result of metamorphosis, they turn into a pupa, and then into an adult. The life expectancy of a scorer is no more than two weeks.