Burying beetles have large club-like
antennae equipped with
chemoreceptors capable of detecting a dead animal from a long distance. After finding a carcass (most usually that of a small
bird or a
mouse), beetles fight amongst themselves (males fighting males, females fighting females) until the winning pair (usually the largest) remains. If a lone beetle finds a carcass, it may continue alone and await a partner. Single males attract mates by releasing a
pheromone from the tip of their abdomens. Females can raise a brood alone, fertilizing her eggs using sperm stored from previous
copulations. The carcass is usually buried by the beetle(s) to hide it from potential competitors, which are numerous. An example of a species of
Nicrophorus that displays this form of bi-parental care and burying activity is
Nicrophorus nepalensis. Pairs of
Nicrophorus nepalensis prepare carcasses and care for the developing larvae in a joint fashion. After burying a carcass, the beetles mate and lay eggs near/on the carcass. When the eggs hatch into larvae they begin feeding on the flesh of the carcass. The adults remain until the larvae begin to pupate.
Burying beetle life cycle The prospective parents begin to dig a hole below the carcass. While doing so, and after removing all hair from the carcass, the beetles cover the animal with antibacterial and antifungal oral and anal secretions, slowing the decay of the carcass and preventing the smell of rotting flesh from attracting competition. The burial process can take around 8 hours. Several pairs of beetles may cooperate to bury large carcasses and then raise their broods communally. The female burying beetle lays eggs in the soil around the crypt. The larvae hatch after a few days and move into a pit in the carcass which the parents have created. Although the larvae are able to feed themselves, both parents also feed the larvae in response to
begging: they digest the flesh and
regurgitate liquid food for the larvae to feed on, a form of
progressive provisioning. It is also thought the parent beetles can produce secretions from head glands that have anti-microbial activity, inhibiting the growth of bacteria and fungi on the vertebrate corpse. The adult beetles continue to protect the larvae, which take several days to mature. Many competitors make this task difficult, e.g.
bluebottles and
ants or burying beetles of either another or the same species. Throughout the entirety of the larva's development, the parents fight off these competitors all the while maintaining an ideal nursery inside the carcass for their offspring. == Infanticide ==