The Egyptian Scarab is perhaps one of the most famous beetles in the world. This scarab, also called the Sacred Scarab, has been depicted for thousands of years in papyrus and art in ancient Egypt. The Egyptian Scarab was a highly important religious symbol to the ancient Egyptians. Scarabs were even mummified and placed in tombs with the dead. The Egyptian Scarab was held as sacred in ancient Egyptian civilizations. The scarab represented immortality to them. One might wonder how a group of people would come to worship this type of beetle, particularly since the Egyptian Scarab is part of a larger class of beetles, known collectively as Dung Beetles. Dung Beetles, as their name implies, feed on dung. The reason why the ancient Egyptians believed that the Sacred Scarab represented immortality is because of the very nature of this beetle (and other dung beetles). The Egyptian Scarab will dig into the earth and bury itself, and then they are seen coming out of the earth, as if born anew. This fact is widely held to be the foundation for the worship of the Egyptian Scarab in ancient times. Egyptian mythology denotes a beetle that rolls the sun across the heavens. This mythos is based on the Egyptian Scarab's behavior in the wild. They use their legs to push large food balls in their environment. In modern times scarabs hold a strong fascination to hobbyists. Many different species of scarab are kept as pets because of their large size and beautiful coloration. Not all scarabs have beautiful coloration, but most would agree that they are all impressive beetles. Like all scarabs the Egyptian Scarab is important ecologically. These beetles feed on the dung of large herbivores. The Egyptian Scarab is a large dung beetle that grows to between 2.5 and 3 centimeters on average at maturity. The Egyptian Scarab is not limited only to Egypt, but instead is found all over the continent of Africa. They have been sighted in a variety of regions from deserts to savannahs. | 
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