This beetle is from 20-30 mm long ( 0.8-1.2 inches) .The head is a metallic yellow color, and males have a black horn which curves backward toward the thorax. Both sexes have yellow antennae which can retract into a ball on the underside of the head. The thorax is a shiny coppery color, with yellow or green on the sides. The abdomen is metallic green. The underbelly is black and green.
Range is from eastern U.S. to the Rocky mountains. This specimen was found at Neale Woods. Its overall occurrence at Fontenelle Forest is not known. Adults are active in spring and summer, under dung. i.
This species, like all dung beetles, are not pests, and play an important role in reducing fecal matter in the environment, thus reducing the number of disease spreading flies. Males and females work in pairs to dig burrows beneath animal excrement. They move some of the excrement down into the tunnel, where the female lays her eggs in it.
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