Australian golden beetles: when men prefer bottles to their ladies

Men's addiction to alcohol has destroyed more than one family. But it also happens that representatives of the stronger sex are not interested in the contents of the bottle, but she herself. This is exactly what happens in the beetles of the Australian bronze goldfish. Males of this species are simply crazy about beer bottles and at the sight of them completely forget about their ladies.

Bronze Australian goldfish are large insects reaching a length of 4 cm. Their habitat is eucalyptus groves in arid areas of the Green Continent. The larvae of goldfish live underground and feed on young tree roots, receiving from them both useful substances and precious moisture.

Larvae turn into adult insects in August — this is the end of the Australian winter. Beetles come out of the ground and start drinking flower nectar. Having gained strength, the males of the golden ones begin to look for females to continue the genus. They fly around looking for potential brides who seem completely uninterested in dating. The females of the Australian golden simply sit in place and wait for their "family happiness" to arrive to them.

If everything works out, mating takes place. It often ends with a fight between lovers, but everything goes without drama. Soon the female lays eggs and dies. Males do not live long either — their main mission is accomplished, and they also stretch out their paws. It was like this for millions of years until beer bottles appeared.

More precisely, the bottles are not to blame for anything. As always, people who behave like pigs are responsible for everything. Bottles thrown on the ground attract male goldfish. In the search for a pair, they focus only on the golden sheen of the elytra of the females. And he looks so much like the glow of bottle glass in the grass! Beetles are not confused by the size of the object, nor the strange intoxicating smell. Having found a glass container, the males try to have sex with her.

At the same time, several individuals flock to one bottle, each of which strives to fulfill its mission. Beetles clinging to containers become easy prey for predators. Australian goldfish have enough enemies, ranging from birds to large ants.

It is also bad that males waste energy on senseless sexual intercourse and, as expected, soon die. At this time, the females are unsuccessfully waiting for their cavaliers and, without waiting, also go to another world. Since there are a lot of beer bottles lying around, thousands of insects die. The only way to save a species from extinction is to stop littering. Unfortunately, science is unlikely to be able to find a way to teach male goldfinches to distinguish bottles from females.

But if you don't throw away a bottle of beer, but attach a little imagination and work to it, beautiful and useful things can turn out.