A Beetle Helps YOU Survive??

Don’t be frightened. This is just a decomposer called a Darkling Beetle. The Darkling Beetle has an exoskeleton. That means it has a hard shell on the outside giving structure and protection to its body. It looks like something tried to eat this beetle or a rock fell on it. See the little piece of exoskeleton that is missing?

When I found this beetle, it was doing what it does best. It was chewing up dead plants and turning them into soil. So if you see one, don’t squish it! It is busy making fertile ground for healthy plants. And what is one of the most important things that plants provide for humans? Oxygen! So without this Darkling Beetle and
other decomposers, we could not live.

We’re all connected in a web of life, aren’t we? One strand of the web is connected to another. And that one is connected to another. Without one strand of the web, the web gets weaker. Without many strands the web falls apart. We need all creatures so that the web of life remains strong and efficient.

Can you name ten things that help you survive?

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