A black carrion beetle (Eusilpha japonica, family Silphidae) was apparently attracted to a stinky dunghill of Japanese raccoon dogs (Nyctereutes viverrinus, family Canidae) beside a naturally fallen tree of Japanese redcedar (Cryptomeria japonica, family Cupressaceae) and began to feed on the fresh dung. Note that this one was infested with lots of tiny red mites (unidentified). Those mites are not parasites but just hitchhikers (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoresis). Captured at noon (around 12:00 PM) of earlyAugust 2023 in a windbreaker forest in Japan.

For a full story (text in Japanese);
https://sigmanaturevlog.blogspot.co...