Update on Doug and Friends

I’m sure you’ll be happy to know that Doug the Dung Beetle and his sombrero wearing amigos are alive and well and doing the Mexican Hat Dance in the Strip Paddock (map below for orientation purposes).

The writing is a bit small I know. If you are like me and resisting bifocals you can click to enlarge.

It has been a week since there was any poo pick up, what with my right-hand pick up helper (that’s Favourite Stepson — bless him) away in the Edinburgh of the South, and me a bit preoccupied with visitors. It’s so lovely having people come to stay, and since for the most part it’s their first time at the farmlet I don’t want them thinking too much about dung (just yet). In deference to this I spent more time in the pool and less time tidying up after horses. It turned out to be not so much of a hardship.

So, anyway, today was the day assigned for a paddock tidy up. Favorite Stepson and I headed off with our gloves and buckets and got started in with vim and vigour. And behold: there under the pony offerings, were these holes, and this little lovely doing some digging.

It’s ok, that dung beetle burrow is in soil not poo.

Happy as a pig in mud. Dung beetle (possibly Juanita) doing the dung thing.

I apologise for the poor quality of these pics. I had Bonnie quite literally breathing down my neck while shooting. It’s not easy composing your close up and keeping the camera still while a pony nuzzles your shoulder. But I digress… Back to the beetles.

‘Is that a carrot you’ve got down there then?’

I had been a little worried that the population was diminished. I hadn’t seen any obvious activity for a while. But no they are still there, our dear little dung beetles, hard at work moving lovely organic fertilizer down into the soil. I could kiss them. Only I won’t. Obviously!

I left the vicinity an hour or so later feeling well pleased with our insect livestock, and as I unlatched the gate, I think I caught the faint strains of a cheerful Mexican dung beetle song. Happy Christmas dung beetles!