A l l   B e e t l e s   A r e   N o t   B u g s

Many kids out in the country where I grew up used to capture a June bug, tie a small thread to it’s back leg, and let it fly around in circles. As these heavy-bodied insects can’t fly very long, we would turn one loose and get a fresh one. As kids we thought that all brown beetles were June beetles.

We found some beetles under decaying dead animals in the woods. These were known as carrion beetles and were beautifully decorated in black and yellows. I happened upon a little long red beetle that would shoot off a puff of smoke out of his bottom if disturbed, and I disturbed him quite a few times--until he ran out of smoke! There were other beautiful beetles we found that were shiny green and blue. But they really stunk due to the fact that they had been rolling up balls of cow dung in which to lay their eggs. We didn’t handle these very much because the stink wouldn’t wash off very well. So we just watched them roll balls and bury them.

The year I went off to college I discovered that some English Beatles could actually sing and play guitars. Along about that time I bought a German beetle that I could drive, also known as the Volkswagen. In the world of real beetles though, there are about 300,000 different kinds out of approximately 600,000 species of insects. We must remember though, that there are still many more which have not been identified. The largest beetle is over 5 inches long, and the smallest is about the size of the head of a pin or smaller. Many of these tiny ones get into our grains and are ground up in our flour, grits and oatmeal. Just consider it a harmless additive to our diets that we have been eating for years with no apparent harm done. Also remember that we weren’t charged for the extra protein!

What is really surprising is the amount of damage done by another very small beetle--the Southern Pine Beetle. It makes very small holes in pine trees. These are about the size of the lead of a pencil. These beetles bore holes and tunnels under the bark--killing the pine very quickly. This little beetle has done over $400,000,000 in damage to pines here in Tennessee alone, and destroyed over 390,000 acres of it’s forests.

Space is not available here for all that could be said about this interesting little insect that has caused such damage. It did occur to me though, as I was writing this little nature nugget, that a parallel can be drawn between these small creatures that cause such great damage and the human element. Just one little sin in our lives can cause even greater damage to us and those around us. Let the Great Creator take control of your life. Study and observe nature and you will see God more clearly.

Burney Tompkins

    - Uncle Burney