This immediately got my attention. Fortunately a very quick dig pulled up this article from Scientific American, which made everything much clearer. I know this isn’t the only case of gender mimicry in the insect world, but I can see why some rove beetles can be called transvestites. It’s self-protective:
So if a smaller male happened to find himself in a mating or eating situation, he would pretend to be female, inviting nearby males to mate with him in the process.
And now I have “transvestite rove beetle” in my Google search history, which tickles me.
If you enjoy beautiful pictures of beetles (and who doesn’t?) I can also recommend the photography of Lisa Charles Watson.
Pre-order the remaining 582 books now!
This topic was automatically closed after 5 days. New replies are no longer allowed.
