The dogged prospector strikes gold. Upon discovering a payload rich with nutrients, the scarab returns home. Face down, guided by the sun, it propels the tightly-packed dung backwards to a burrow lined with dusky spheres. Underground, it tunnels into the ball to deposit a precious egg. In time, the larva hatches and feeds, until it emerges, fully formed, and instinct drives it down the same dusty trail to repeat the cycle.