Small, Shiny Dung Beetle

A fact-filled picture book about the life cycle of dung beetles with a large fold-out map (ages 4 to 8)

Start Small, Think Big is a primary-science picture book series that takes young readers from something small and familiar to new areas of knowledge where they need to think big! Small, Shiny Dung Beetle is about the life cycle of the dung beetle with its super-strength and navigation skills. With a giant fold-out map of Africa and I Spy game.

Did you know that an adult African elephant can poo up to 20 times a day, producing over 100 kg of dung. So why isn't the savannah covered in it? Because of the mighty dung beetle!  

Small, Shiny Dung Beetle tells the story of a female dung beetle, who meets her mate on a fresh pile of elephant poo. Learn about her life cycle (more interesting than a butterfly's) and the super-strength it takes to keep the planet tidy. Because dung beetles don't just eat elephant poo. They could be in a field near you.

This book will feed the curiosity of the youngest of readers who are:

• keen to know how the world works
• fascinated by nature 
• enjoy learning new information

The story is carefully written for children learning to read, with additional factual captions for more advanced readers.

And here’s the WOW-factor – a large fold-out map of Africa at the end with diagrams and a fun I-Spy game to take children back into the book to find and identify animals in the pictures.

Small, Shiny Dung Beetle is part of the Start Small, Think Big series of science-based picture books:

• Aimed at children aged 4 to 8
• Covers KS1 primary science subjects that children learn at school 
• High-quality educational content, beautifully illustrated

Small, Shiny Dung Beetle explores the story of a little green beetle involving fights, theft, navigation by the stars, and a lot of determination and hard work. It covers the life cycle of insects, parts of an insect, food chains, and the different types of dung beetle. The book focuses on the African savannah and shows the beetle’s important role in cleaning up and enriching habitats across the world.

Each book in the series is set in a different habitat and part of the world:
Small, Sparkling Raindrop (Southeast Asia/wetlands and the water cycle)
Small, Speckled Egg (polar regions and the life cycle of an Arctic tern)
Little, Brown Nut (Amazon rainforest and the life cycle of a Brazil Nut tree)
Tiny, Floating Coral (Great Barrier Reef and the life cycle of coral)
Fluffy, Flying Seed (meadowlands and the life cycle of a dandelion)
Small, Shiny Dung Beetle (African savannah and the life cycle of an insect) 

Build your own life cycle library with this series, a brilliant addition to any home or school bookshelf. 

Printed on FSC paper from sustainable forests.

Contributor: Hannah Bailey (Illustrated by), Sally-Ann Spence (Consultant editor)

Illustrator: Hannah Bailey

UK Delivery:

• Free delivery on all orders of £10 or more.
• £1.49 delivery fee on orders below £10.
• UK orders are shipped via Royal Mail 2nd Class.

International Delivery:

• Flat rate delivery charges vary by country.

Dispatch and Delivery Times:

• All orders are shipped from our warehouse in Northampton, UK within 48 hours of receipt during working hours.
• UK mainland orders typically arrive within 3-5 working days via Royal Mail 2nd Class.
• International estimated delivery times:
• Europe & Channel Islands: 7 to 10 working days
• USA: 7 to 15 working days
• Rest of the World: 9 to 21 working days

View our full delivery infomation here.