Dance of the Dung Beetles
Their Role in Our Changing World
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Dance of the Dung Beetles
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Narrated by:
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Dennis Kleinman
About this listen
The sweeping scientific and social history of the humble dung beetle.
In this sweeping history of more than 3,000 years, beginning with ancient Egypt, scientist Marcus Byrne and writer Helen Lunn capture the diversity of dung beetles and their unique behavior patterns. Dung beetles' fortunes have followed the shifts from a world dominated by a religion that symbolically incorporated them into some of its key concepts of rebirth, to a world in which science has largely separated itself from religion and alchemy. With more than 6,000 species found throughout the world, these unassuming but remarkable creatures are fundamental to some of humanity's most cherished beliefs and have been ever-present in religion, art, literature, science, and the environment. They are at the center of current gene research, play an important role in keeping our planet healthy, and some nocturnal dung beetles have been found to navigate by the starry skies. Outlining the development of science from the point of view of the humble dung beetle is what makes this charming story of immense interest to general listeners and entomologists alike.
©2019 Marcus Byrne and Helen Lunn (P)2020 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
Good science
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Despite this, there are many tangential forays into matters of biology and ecology, so that by the end of the book I certainly did also learn a reasonable amount about the creatures themselves. Unfortunately the book only gets three stars because wading through so much historical detail rather detracted from the experience. Had the book been written with the lives of the beetles front and centre, with titbits of historical background embedded throughout — rather than the reverse – it could easily have been a five-star read.
Lastly, I listened to the audiobook and was disappointed by how many words the narrator botched. Not just scientific terms but even relatively common words ('antipodes', 'arboreal'...) were mispronounced or stressed in ways that changed the meaning (eg: stressing the first syllable of 'frequent' even when used as a verb).
A bit too heavy on the history
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apparently I need more than 15 words to submit this review.
Who doesn't love a dung beetle?
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