Science is Fun Fridays!

 Beetle Butt!

That's right, that pretty magenta center is actually poop.  The gray layer is the intestine, and the purple is the malphigian tube, (an excretory organ).

Researchers are studying this to understand how beetles use their butts to stay hydrated.

Beetles are able to open their rectums and take in moisture from the air.  They convert this into fluid that they can then absorb into their body.  Their specialized organs can also extract water from food, so that beetles often go their entire lives without drinking liquid water.

Such as the Scarab, or Dung Beetle, of the Sahara.

"There is twenty times as much insect biomass on Earth than that of humans.  They play key roles in most food webs, have a huge impact on virtually all ecosystems and on human health.  So we need to understand them better," says lead researcher, Kenneth Veland Halberg.