News Animals

This desert beetle runs to cool off

Onymacris plana appears to be the first known animal to do this

An image of a desert beetle on light brown sand

After a run under the sun, this black Namib Desert beetle cools down instead of heating up.

ajott/Wikimedia Commons

By Rohini Subrahmanyam

In the hot dunes of Southern Africa’s Namib Desert, the black beetle Onymacris plana runs fast for its tiny size. Turns out, the speed not only helps the beetles find food but also, perhaps, cool down.