scarabæus

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. An Old World genus of lamellicorn beetles, typical of the Scarabæidæ, formerly equivalent to Lamellicornia, now restricted to about 70 species distributed through Africa and the warmer parts of Europe and Asia. They are coprophagous in habit, the adults rolling up balls of excrement in which the females lay their eggs. The sacred scarab of the Egyptians is S. sacer, found throughout the countries bordering on the Mediterranean. It is probable also that another species, S. laticollis, was held in religious veneration by the Egyptians, as the scarab is sometimes figured by them with striate elytra, a character which pertains to this alone. Species of Ateuchus, as A. pius, were formerly included in this genus.
2. n. [lowercase; pl. scarabæi (-ī).] Same as scarab, 3.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. Same as scarab in both senses.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. scarabaeid beetle considered divine by ancient Egyptians