What is "burying beetle"

Necrophore \Nec"ro*phore\, n. [Gr. nekro`s a dead body + fe`rein to bear.] (Zo["o]l.) Any one of numerous species of beetles of the genus Necrophorus and allied genera; -- called also burying beetle, carrion beetle, sexton beetle.

Carrion \Car"ri*on\, a. Of or pertaining to dead and putrefying carcasses; feeding on carrion.

A prey for carrion kites.
--Shak.

Carrion beetle (Zo["o]l.), any beetle that feeds habitually on dead animals; -- also called sexton beetle and burying beetle. There are many kinds, belonging mostly to the family Silphid[ae].

Carrion buzzard (Zo["o]l.), a South American bird of several species and genera (as Ibycter, Milvago, and Polyborus), which act as scavengers. See Caracara.

Carrion crow, the common European crow ( Corvus corone) which feeds on carrion, insects, fruits, and seeds.

n. sexton beetle; necrophore

Burying beetles or sexton beetles ( genus Nicrophorus) are the best-known members of the family Silphidae ( carrion beetles). Most of these beetles are black with red markings on the elytra (forewings). Burying beetles are true to their name—they bury the carcasses of small vertebrates such as birds and rodents as a food source for their larvae. They are unusual among insects in that both the male and female parents take care of the brood.They are carnivores.

The genus name is sometimes spelled Necrophorus in older texts. This is an emendation by Carl Peter Thunberg (1789) of Fabricius's original name, and is not valid.

The American burying beetle (sp. Nicrophorus americanus) has been on the U.S. endangered species list since 1989.