An LMAC Special - Teaming up with HiQ - ✨190 HIVE plus 100 HIQS in the Prize Pool!✨A
How does the mind make associations? I think the process of creating a collage presents that question every time I do it. @shaka offered the LMAC community a lovely template photo this week.
I knew right away I wanted to open the space, add more water and put ducks in. I've seen so many ducks and geese this spring that, even more than blossoms, these animals have come to suggest renewal to me. This is their mating season (in my area) and soon I will be seeing their offspring toddling along next to the adults.
Unfortunately the other side of renewal is decay. Yesterday I read a wonderful blog by @abneagro that discussed a class of beetle (neoathyreus) that feeds on waste. Without decomposers, such as this beetle, there would be no renewal.
A Species of Dung Beetle Carrying Dung
Luca.favorido: Public Domain
And so in my collage today there are ducks, for renewal, and a worm, for decay.
From a human perspective not all beetles are helpful, but the dung beetle is essential. It belongs to a class of organism known as a decomposer. According to the National Geographic Society, decomposers play a critical role in the flow of energy through an ecosystem. They break apart dead organisms into simpler inorganic materials, making nutrients available to primary producers.
Egyptian Scarab (Scarab of Neferu-Re)
Anonymous author. From the Walters Art Museum. Public Domain. The Egyptians of antiquity thought the dung beetle was an incarnation of the sun god. According to Johns Hopkins Archeological Museum, in the view of Ancient Egyptians, a beetle rolling a dung ball across the ground resembled the sun moving across the sky. The beetle laid eggs in the dung, and when new life emerged from this waste, Egyptians viewed the birth as a sign of renewal.
Most dung beetles prefer fresh poo produced by herbivores. These beetles get maximum nutrition from the fresh, moist dung of grass-eating animals. Some beetles do eat the waste of carnivores and some even eat decaying leaves and mushrooms.
A dung beetle is one of the cattle rancher's best friends. The insect helps to maintain healthy pastureland. Not only do the beetles play a role in breaking down dung (which is obviously produced in great quantities on a cattle ranch!) but they also "disrupt pest life cycles such as fly infestations".
Scarabaeus viettei Dung Beetle Native to Madagascar
Credit: Axel Strauß CC Creative Commons 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic
While the cattle rancher may love the dung beetle, and while the beetle's decomposing activity may be an essential part of nature, there may also be a downside to having this insect around. It has been suggested that this type of beetle may actually facilitate the spread of some parasitic diseases. This is especially true for those beetles that feed on the waste of carnivores and omnivores. The beetle may carry the parasite/eggs on its exoskeleton.
Transmission of Toxoplasma Oocyst
Credit:Ilovericexoxo. License, CC 4.0.. In the diagram above, substitute the beetle for the mouse and you can see how the dung beetle may become a carrier/transmitter of the toxoplasma gondii parasite.
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The beetles have been implicated in the transmission of two cat diseases, coccidia and toxoplasmosis. The eggs of these parasites have been found on the beetles themselves, and in their waste. According to an article published by the Jacksonville Veterinary Medical Society, the beetles "play an important role in the transmission of feline coccidian oocysts in the field."
I began with an image from my personal collection:
I borrowed the green shrub from LMAC's Image Library, LIL.
Thank you @lisbethseijas
I borrowed the worm also from LMAC's Image Library, LIL.
Thank you @evagavilan2 (I added the eye and mouth)
The rest of the elements in the collage came from @shaka's template photo.
I added a little accent with a paint brush on GIMP. Arranging, sizing and manipulating elements I accomplished with GIMP, Paint 3D and Paint. Frames for the GIF were layered on GIMP.
This week LMAC is featured in HiQ - The Hivestyle Magazine,"the satirical infotainment magazine that regularly blasts Hive blocks". Check out the magazine. It's really cool and informative.
Every week @shaka runs a collage contest. You can find information about that here. The Image Library is amazing, if you haven't looked into it, you should. If you are on Hive you can contribute to the library, and anyone can borrow from the library. All the images are public domain.
Thank you @shaka for the inspiration and work you put in, @quantumg for your genius coding and hard work, and @mballesteros for you invaluable curating for the English and Spanish language communities.
Please note: I do not compete in the contest but I find making collages always to be a rewarding experience.
Thank you for reading my blog. Hive on!
