dung beetle

dung beetle

n.

Any of various beetles chiefly of the family Scarabaeidae that feed on dung and lay their eggs in it, often rolling it into balls.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

dung beetle

or

dung chafer

n

(Animals) any of the various beetles of the family Scarabaeidae and related families that feed on or breed in dung

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

dung′ bee`tle

n.

any of various scarab beetles that feed on or breed in dung.

[1625–35]

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

dung beetle - any of numerous beetles that roll balls of dung on which they feed and in which they lay eggs scarabaean, scarabaeid, scarabaeid beetle - any of numerous species of stout-bodied beetles having heads with horny spikes scarab, scarabaeus, Scarabaeus sacer - scarabaeid beetle considered divine by ancient Egyptians tumblebug - any of various dung beetles dorbeetle - Old World dung beetle that flies with a droning sound

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