Beetles strange life story

Most beetles lay only a few eggs at a time. Weevils lay single eggs, and may drill a hole for each; ladybirds lay them in batches, on leaves. Scarabs collect a ball of dung, dig a hole, bury it, and lay their eggs in it; burying beetles do the same with the bodies of birds and small mammals. Chafers lay their eggs in the soil, bark beetles in wood, and some water beetles in a special case that they fasten to an underwater leaf. When the egg hatches, no little beetle comes out; instead there appears a curious little worm like grub, or larva. Sometimes the grubs are active, running about and eating other creatures (as those of ladybirds do), or eating plants, as do the grubs of bark beetles and click beetles ("wireworms").

Or the larvae may be legless and sluggish, as are those of weevils. Perhaps the most interesting is the grub of the oil, or "blister," beetle. It lies in wait on flowers, holds on to the legs of bees, and is carried back to the beehive, where it eats the bees' eggs and honey. As it eats and grows, the grub "molts" from time to time, shedding its old skin and growing a new, bigger one, just as we buy bigger clothes as we grow bigger. It may live only a few weeks, or it may live several years, as with cockchafers and stag beetles. Then, at one of its moults, it turns into a pupa (that is, it develops a protective skin and lies quiet for a while). Inside this pupa skin, the larva is changing into a beetle. When it comes out, it is fully grown, complete with wings, and ready to go out searching for food and a mate. This complicated kind of life-story is called metamor-phosis, which you can read more about in a separate article.