Rediscovering an interesting group of ant-loving beetles

Case-bearer leaf beetles, scientifically called Cryptocephalinae, live a secretive life. While the adults hide their heads inside their torso, like a cloaked, mysterious figure, their eggs stay hidden inside a case, carefully constructed by their mothers, using fecal pellets. Having already hatched, the larvae and, later, the pupae keep this initial case and build on […]