burying beetle

American  

noun

1. any of various carrion beetles that bury the carcasses of small animals, especially rodents, in which their eggs have been deposited.

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burying beetle British  

noun

1. Also called: sexton.  a beetle of the genus Necrophorous , which buries the dead bodies of small animals by excavating beneath them, using the corpses as food for themselves and their larvae: family Silphidae

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Etymology

Origin of burying beetle

First recorded in 1795–1805

Example Sentences

Something similar happened in Oklahoma and Texas, where cotton farmers briefly couldn’t use Enlist Duo last year because of risk to the endangered American burying beetle.

From Science Magazine • Oct. 31, 2023

The Saint Louis Zoo pulled nearly $900,000 in money designated for conservation programs, including one dedicated to monitoring and reintroducing the endangered American burying beetle.

From Washington Post • Jun. 8, 2020

They’ll maintain a database containing DNA of every American burying beetle they release and capture, to confirm the population is continuing to reproduce and remaining genetically diverse, Spear said.

From Washington Times • Jun. 15, 2019

For an article on the American burying beetle, artist Kelly Murphy knew she’d need to render the insect from a variety of angles.

From Scientific American • Oct. 25, 2018

A yellow-and-black burying beetle, crawling across the white fur of his belly, stopped, waved its short, curved antennae and then moved on again.

From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams