When it comes to ingenuity, the golden tortoise beetle (Charidotella sexpunctata) larva has all others beat. Instead of discarding its feces, it collects them to use as a means of chemical protection. Golden tortoise beetle larvae have a “fecal fork” on their last abdominal segment; they also have a muscular, telescopic anus that deposits their feces onto the fecal fork. Bits of shed exoskeleton combined with days’ worth of feces accumulate on this fork, which is held over the body to create a fecal shield. Golden tortoise beetle feces contain alkaloids from the plants that they’ve eaten (bindweed and other plants in the family Convolvulaceae) which are bitter tasting or toxic to would-be predators.
