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Here’s science news you should drop all your expensive equipment in the middle of an experiment just to learn: “Beetles die during sex with beer bottles”

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So Discovery Magazine tells us:

It’s a case of mistaken attraction, because the beer bottles happen to possess all of the features that drive male Australian jewel beetles wild. They’re big and orangey brown in color, with a slightly dimpled surface near the bottom (designed to prevent the bottle from slipping out of one’s grasp) that reflects light in much the same way as female wing covers.

As a result, the beer bottles are irresistible to the male insects, which will die trying to mate with them in the hot Australian sun.

“We were walking along a dirt road with the usual scattering of beer cans and bottles when we saw about six bottles with beetles on top or crawling up the side. It was clear the beetles were trying to mate with the bottles.”

And you thought the human dating scene was tough? Scram off, lab rat! You dunno the half.

Hat tip: Five Feet of Fury

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