| God has an enemy - Cremastocheilus Beetle | | | | beetle to mate with. Thefemale will then find another |
| ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ | | | | ant nest and start the cycle over again. |
| In the Americas a little brown or black beetle lives that | | | | When I think of this beetle, it reminds me a lot of God's |
| most of us would not evennotice. In fact, most of you | | | | enemy, sin. We are soblind, that in many respects we |
| would probably just step on it if you came across it. | | | | are just like the ant. We think that sin is normalin our |
| But,this little beetle has a fascinating story. | | | | lives and so we just tend to ignore it. We need special |
| This beetle happens to be a parasite. We usually think | | | | direction from Godto recognize and destroy the sin in |
| of a parasite as something thatlives in or on us and | | | | our lives. |
| makes us sick or itch. But this beetle is a parasite on | | | | If we don't get rid of the sin, it will destroy the most |
| ants! | | | | precious things in ourlives and eventually kill us as well. |
| Its name is Cremastocheilus (Kree-mast-oh-kyle'-us), | | | | Let's ask God to help us to find theparasites in our |
| sometimes called theanteater scarab and is nothing | | | | lives and destroy them. |
| special to look at. But, it has an incredible ability. It isable | | | | ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ |
| to change the way it smells. | | | | Resources |
| If you are familiar with ants, then you know that they | | | | ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ |
| are able to recognize others intheir colonies with their | | | | I have not been able to find common books with |
| marvelous sense of smell. They cannot do it by sight, | | | | pictures of Cremastocheilus in them. |
| becausethey cannot see very well. In fact, some ants | | | | However, there are a few published on the web. I |
| are totally blind. So, when two antsmeet, they will | | | | suggest going to andclicking on the images tab. Then |
| stroke the other ant with their antennae collecting | | | | search for cremastocheilus and you should be ableto |
| minute amountsof chemicals in special receptors that | | | | find an image or two. |
| allow them to identify if the other ant is friendor foe. | | | | If you want to collect some specimens, the easiest |
| Incredibly, the Cremastocheilus beetle can change the | | | | way to do that is to put a largeflat rock on the nest of |
| way it smells. When it is timefor the female beetle to | | | | one of the large carpenter ant colonies found in most |
| lay her eggs, she will go to an ant nest and walk up to | | | | pineforests. You can tell them, because they make a |
| theentrance. She then changes the way she smells so | | | | large pile of pine needles and ifyou listen, you can hear |
| that the ants will think that sheis an ant from that | | | | them rustling around inside. To catch some, place a |
| colony. | | | | largeflat rock on the side of the nest. Come back in a |
| Once she has passed the guards, she makes her way | | | | few days when the sun has beenwarming up the |
| down into the ant nest andfinds the nursery. She then | | | | rock. One of these beetles can often be found |
| lays her eggs in with the ant eggs. | | | | warming up under therock. |
| When the baby beetle hatches, it smells like a baby | | | | ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ |
| ant. But, it does not eat whatbaby ants eat. It eats | | | | Tracking God News IS PUBLISHED BY: |
| baby ants! The ants take care of it anyway, because | | | | ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~copyright 2002 |
| to themit smells right. | | | | Ron McCluskey |
| When the baby beetle gets big enough, it will pupate | | | | You may reproduce this newsletter in part or in whole |
| and then become an adult. | | | | providing that you include thewebsite, contact |
| As an adult, it leaves the ant nest to find another adult | | | | information and resource links. |