Beetle

The simulacrum of a beetle runs electric in our studio.

The biologist JBS Haldane who lived the later part of his life, and died, in India is said to have once remarked that if an entity like God was indeed the creator of life then he must have had an ‘inordinate fondness for beetles’. This was his way of taking note of the incredible number, variety and range of beetle species.

Climate change, especially global warming, has a fascinating correlation with the evolution of god’s favourite creatures – the beetles. Studies show that as temperatures have increased over the past century, the world’s biggest beetles may have been shrinking, some downsizing by as much as 20% in 45 years.

Some beetle species, like pine and bark beetles have been going into what’s called a ‘reproductive overdrive’ as a result of how warmer weather changes mating behaviour. This Leads to a greater frequency of generations. These many more beetles spell disaster for pine trees, as the beetles burrow into them, and hollow them out from the inside at an increasing rate. Leading to waves of insect Induced deforestation.

On the other hand, a charming paper titled Quantifying Beetle-Mediated Effects on Gas Fluxes from Dung Pats  by five Finnish biologists demonstrates that dung beetles, who live and nourish themselves in cow dung contribute to lessening the emission of methane from cow-dung by aerating cow-pats. Given that agriculture, particularly cattle rearing, is a major contributor to the emission of greenhouse gases, the humble dung beetle emerges as a formidable ecological warrior against climate change.

It needs to be understood that insect species and populations are going extinct at an alarming rate due to global warming and climate change. More than 40% of insect species are declining and a third are endangered. The rate of extinction is eight times faster than that of mammals, birds and reptiles. There may not be many insects left by the end of our century.

Beetles are amongst the hardiest of insects. But a lot depends on whether dung beetles outlive bark beetles, or vice versa.

God may have had an inordinate fondness for beetles, but aspects of quixotic and whimsical nature, aided by climate change, may be well be playing a game of beetle roulette.

Raqs Media Collective

Raqs Media Collective was formed in 1992 in Delhi. Raqs expresses a mode of ‘kinetic contemplation’ with a restless entanglement with the world, and with time. Raqs enlists objects such as an early-modern tiger-automata from Southern India, or a biscuit from the Paris Commune, or a cup salvaged from an ancient Mediterranean shipwreck, to turn them into devices to sniff and taste time. Devices are deployed thus in order to undertake historical subterfuge and philosophical queries. Raqs practices across several media; making installation, sculpture, video, performance, text, lexica and curation. In 2001, they co-founded the Sarai program at CSDS New Delhi and ran it for a decade, where they also edited the Sarai Reader series. They were the Artistic Directors for the Yokohama Triennale 2020, “Afterglow”, where they developed sources around toxicity, care, and the luminosity of friendship.

Commissioned by Khoj International Artists’ Association. Khoj's participation in World Weather Network is supported by the British Council’s Creative Commissions for Climate Action, a global programme exploring climate change through art, science and digital technology.

Part of the weather station: 28th North Parallel - find out more here.