Solitude is a human preoccupation. Every quiet step is thunder to beetle life underfoot, a tug of impalpable thread on the web pulling mate to mate and predator to prey, a beginning or and end. Every choice is a world made new for the chosen.
Barbara Kingsolver: Novelist, Poet and Essayist
Hmmm, can you fathom the quiet thunder?
The quotation at the head of this post is one of my favourite opening lines of a novel from one of my favourite novelists. It is from Kingsolver’s Prodigal Summer.
The words echo in my mind frequently these days as I trudge through fields and down woodland trails, along ponds and marshes, immersing myself in the endless fascinating, miniature world of insects. I decided I was overdue to give a little love to the oft-overlooked world of Beetles.
There are an estimated 380,000 beetle species in the world and over 8,500 species in Canada. Beetles represent 40% of the world’s known insects.
Beetles occupy nearly every available terrestrial and freshwater habitat. They range in size from less than a millimeter to 19 centimeters in length.
Beetles are strong, durable and adaptable. They have evolved to survive in a wide range of habitats and are able to overcome many challenges.
I will give the last word on the subject to British-Indian Scientist John B.S. Haldane:
If one could conclude as to the nature of the Creator from a study of creation it would appear that God has an inordinate fondness for stars and beetles.
~ Now Available Online from Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: Hunting Muskie, Rites of Passage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet
~ Michael Robert Dyet is also the author of Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel (now out of print) which was a double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .
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Tags: Barbara Kingsolver · beetles · metaphor · Michael Robert DyetNo Comments