r/Awwducational • u/SixteenSeveredHands • Nov 09 '24

Verified African Woolly Chafers (Genus Sparrmannia): these beetles have a dense, insulating coat of "fur" that protects them from the frigid conditions of the desert at night

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2.9k Upvotes

99% Upvoted

62 comments sorted by

203

u/dropkickninja Nov 09 '24

Aww. Furry bugs are cute

55

u/EpilepticMushrooms Nov 09 '24

Seriously, they look like bees. I wonder if they fill in the same ecological spheres.

-1

u/blobredditor Nov 09 '24

ticks?

8

u/krill_me_god Nov 10 '24

I uhh... I don't think ticks have fuzz on them.

1

u/OverallConfused Nov 10 '24

Ticks are arachnids rather than bugs

7

u/Skulgar321 Nov 10 '24

In the taxonomic sense, neither ticks nor beetles are bugs (not members of hemiptera). In the colloquial sense, both are arthropods that many would call a bug.

1

u/OverallConfused Nov 10 '24

I see what your saying, but I would argue that it is disingenuous to say that a beetle is flat out not a bug. Insects that are not members of the order hemiptera are still referred to as false bugs, and in a colloquial sense, most still make a distinction between insects and other arthropods. I think it is more then reasonable to draw a line between an arachnid being referred to as part of the broad term "bug", and a beetle being called a bug.

1

u/C4tdiscusserb01 Nov 14 '24

To me, “bugs” are just all arthropods except most crustaceans, all gastropods, all worms, and maybe some other stuff I’m forgetting.

1

u/OverallConfused Nov 14 '24

Gastropods and worms aren't arthropods Gastropods are gastropods, and most things we refer to as "worms" are annelids

1

u/C4tdiscusserb01 Nov 14 '24

Yes. I’m aware that gastropods and annelids aren’t arthropods. That’s why I made the distinction.

2

u/OverallConfused Nov 14 '24

I see, I misunderstood. That makes sense

65

u/SixteenSeveredHands Nov 09 '24 edited Nov 09 '24

Beetles of the genus Sparrmannia are widely distributed throughout the arid and semi-arid regions of southern Africa. They have very distinctive features, with large, plump bodies and tawny-colored "fur," and some species can measure up to 25mm (nearly 1 inch) long. 

They generally hide in underground burrows during the day, and emerge only at night, when the desert is substantially cooler. Their dense layer of "fur" (setae) acts as insulation, which allows the beetles to remain active at night, even when the temperature plummets.

Sources & More Info:

17

u/cdbfoster Nov 09 '24

Genuine question, why does the fur help them? It's not like they're warm blooded. Is it just the heat of the day that they're keeping in?

21

u/SixteenSeveredHands Nov 10 '24 edited Nov 10 '24

They're able to produce body heat by contracting their flight muscles, and the fur (which is especially thick around the thorax, where the flight muscles are located) helps to prevent that heat from dissipating.

8

u/cdbfoster Nov 10 '24

Well that's more interesting than I could've hoped! Thank you!

8

u/illiter-it Nov 09 '24

Yes, deserts get surprisingly cold at night.

1

u/RadicalLynx Nov 13 '24

The comment you're replying to was asking where the heat comes from that the fur is helping to trap, not whether it gets cold at night.

1

u/illiter-it Nov 13 '24

And my "yes" answered that

0

u/RadicalLynx Nov 13 '24

"where does the heat come from" "Yes, it gets cold" Is not answering the question asked lol

Someone else answered the question by saying they flex a certain muscle to generate the heat that the fur then traps. Hope this helps!

1

u/illiter-it Nov 13 '24

I was wrong about the heat coming from the daytime sun, but the commenter did ask if that's where the heat comes from, hence the "yes". Hope you learn to read!

0

u/Katouido Nov 14 '24

so you replied 'yes' to imply that the heat comes from the sun,
even though you did not know if it was correct or not
(it turns out your assumption was incorrect, you spread bad information)
someone else questioned the odd syntax of your incorrect reply
you assert your answer was not baffling (it was)
they found the correct information to help enlighten you
you tell them to 'learn to read'

please stop larping your username.
you may actually misinform someone someday.

1

u/MadeOnThursday Nov 09 '24

are they related to bumblebees?

22

u/Ruathar Nov 09 '24

Sadly... No.

Bumblebees are in the Apidae family which is basically all variations of bees and some other vespids.

These are from the family of Scarabaeidae so they're related to Scarab Beetles.

1

u/krill_me_god Nov 10 '24

Vespids include bees!? I thought that was just for social wasps.

3

u/Dracorex13 Nov 10 '24

Bees are, technically, also social wasps.

1

u/krill_me_god Nov 10 '24

I mean I know that, everything in hymenoptera is a wasp but aren't bees in a separate family from standard fare social wasps like yellow jackets or paper wasps?

1

u/Dracorex13 Nov 10 '24

Yes, Apidae

7

u/Critter-Enthusiast Nov 09 '24

Bumblebees are bees, these are beetles

-4

u/OGigachaod Nov 09 '24

Beetles can fly too.

4

u/NoThoughtsOnlyFrog Nov 09 '24

Most insects can fly, doesn’t mean anything

3

u/MiserableAmbition550 Nov 10 '24

Bats can fly too.

21

u/Wit-Of-Knit Nov 09 '24

These bugs are ready for a PIXAR movie. Or an anime.

12

u/iiil87n Nov 09 '24

soft gasp

I love him!!

9

u/TheExcitedTech Nov 09 '24

It looks like a big bee

6

u/i-like-snuggles Nov 09 '24

Fluffy Buuuuug!!!!!!

3

u/canI_bumacig Nov 09 '24

Proof that fur can make anything cute

3

u/Isuridae Nov 09 '24

Looks like it could be a pokemon

3

u/mountainsunset123 Nov 09 '24

Wow life is amazing. Furry beetles!

3

u/sarahACA Nov 09 '24

So cute!

3

u/Middle-Obligation-30 Nov 09 '24

Never thought I woul call a beetle cute and have the desire to pet it 😅

3

u/Neuroware Nov 10 '24

it's a Bumblebee...tle

1

u/Complete-Housing-720 Nov 10 '24

Man, they really missed the opportunity for them to be called a Bumblebeetle.

2

u/BokChoyBaka Nov 09 '24

Thought I saw bald spot, so I thought it was a middle aged bee angry its head would 🐝 cold

2

u/One1moretyme Nov 09 '24

it's a Bumble Beetle

2

u/avianeddy Nov 10 '24

Always scared when a bug is fuzzy. Because fuzzy usually means no-no like w caterpillars

2

u/Tulin7Actual Nov 10 '24

Cutest beetle I’ve ever seen. This is awesome.

2

u/Fuzzy974 Nov 10 '24

I'm not saying that's a pokemon but... Looks like a pokemon to me.

1

u/zorbiburst Nov 10 '24

tell them that I love them

1

u/Unltd8828 Nov 10 '24

Looks like a bumblebee

1

u/LengthinessNo1494 Nov 23 '24

Hope it not gonna extinction when desert begin the cycle make it very green.

1

u/Interesting-End-6151 Nov 25 '24

I have to ask, do they bit humans? It looks cute. But i have since learned that the must dangerous ones sometimes can be.

1

u/Stock_Mushroom_8637 Nov 25 '24

i would never put beetles and cute together- but make an exception- just this one time.

1

u/Critter-Enthusiast Nov 09 '24

We have some version of these guys in the USA.

0

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