Kheper

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Kheper
Kheper dung beetle.jpg
Kheper nigroaeneus in South Africa
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Suborder: Polyphaga
Infraorder: Scarabaeiformia
Family: Scarabaeidae
Genus: Scarabaeus
Subgenus: Kheper
Janssens, 1940

Kheper is a subgenus of Scarabaeus : the typical genus of scarab beetles in the tribe Scarabaeini. [1] [2] The genus name honors the god Khepri in the ancient Egyptian religion, who is depicted as having a scarab for a head. [3] Kheper can be found on the border between Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa in the arid sand dunes. [4] This genus of scarab beetles share a family with the oldest and most revered scarab beetles, the Scarabaeus sacer . [2]

References

  1. BioLib (retrieved 23 August 2021)
  2. 1 2 Forgie, Shaun A.; Philips, T. Keith; Scholtz, Clarke H. (2005). "Evolution of the Scarabaeini (Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae)". Systematic Entomology. 30 (1): 60–96. doi:10.1111/j.1365-3113.2004.00273.x.
  3. Wilkinson, Richard H. (2003). The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt. Thames & Hudson. pp. 230–233.
  4. Deschodt, Christian; Davis, Adrian; Scholtz, Clarke (2011). "New dung beetle (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) taxa from arid south-western Africa". Insect Systematics & Evolution. 42 (3): 277–294. doi:10.1163/187631211X568173. hdl: 2263/19586 . ISSN   1399-560X.