~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tracking God News Looking for character and personality of God in His creation.

Issue # 2 Editor: Ron McCluskey mailto:editor@trackinggod.com

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ IN THIS ISSUE

God Cares for His Creatures Short Tip Butterfly Books Short Tip Contact Information

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FEATURE ARTICLE, God Cares for His Creatures ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Some of most brilliant butterflies in tropical America are butterflies of genus Morpho. Many species are brilliant metallic blue. A few of females are metallic red. These butterflies have a mirror like quality to upper surface of their wings. They can be seen from several miles away if they are flying over tops of trees in jungle. The sun reflects off of their brilliant wings.

So, how does God protect these beautiful creatures? Apparently they are good to eat, although I have never tried one. The birds like to eat them. But, if they are so easy to see, how do they survive? God has designed that brilliant reflective surface of wings actually protect it!

If a bird sees Morpho and starts to chase it, butterfly will fly down into dense shadows under jungle canopy. Here, where it is dark, upper surface of wings looks almost black and bird will have trouble seeing butterfly. If bird is still able to track butterfly and gets close to it, butterfly will find a shaft of sunlight coming down through trees. It will then fly through it, causing a FLASH of light to shine in eyes of bird. The butterfly can then get away.

In Americas a little brown or black beetle lives that most of us would not even notice. In fact, most of you would probably just step on it if you came across it. But, this little beetle has a fascinating story.

This beetle happens to be a parasite. We usually think of a parasite as something that lives in or on us and makes us sick or itch. But this beetle is a parasite on ants!

Its name is Cremastocheilus (Kree-mast-oh-kyle'-us), sometimes called anteater scarab and is nothing special to look at. But, it has an incredible ability. It is able to change way it smells.

If you are familiar with ants, then you know that they are able to recognize others in their colonies with their marvelous sense of smell. They cannot do it by sight, because they cannot see very well. In fact, some ants are totally blind. So, when two ants meet, they will stroke other ant with their antennae collecting minute amounts of chemicals in special receptors that allow them to identify if other ant is friend or foe.

Incredibly, Cremastocheilus beetle can change way it smells. When it is time for female beetle to lay her eggs, she will go to an ant nest and walk up to entrance. She then changes way she smells so that ants will think that she is an ant from that colony.

Once she has passed guards, she makes her way down into ant nest and finds nursery. She then lays her eggs in with ant eggs.

When baby beetle hatches, it smells like a baby ant. But, it does not eat what baby ants eat. It eats baby ants! The ants take care of it anyway, because to them it smells right.