Last modified on Sat 10 Apr 2021 05.31 EDT
Ashleigh Whiffinâs day job as assistant curator of entomology is to look after National Museums Scotlandâs vast collection of preserved insects. But her passion for the creatures doesnât end when she goes home; in her spare time she spends hours recording and verifying sightings of a specific group of large carrion beetles in the family
silphidae.
âSilphidae are absolutely brilliant,â Whiffin says from her Edinburgh office. âTheyâre decomposers, so they are really vital for recycling and also have forensic applications. Some of the members in the family are called burying beetles and they actually prepare a carcass, make a nest out of the corpse and then feed on the rotting flesh and regurgitate it for their kids. Theyâre quite a charming â but also grisly â insect.â