Hi Kerry
or
Bombardier
Glad to see you here on the pineapple thread and I do hope everything is going well. That is a really good stock choice for this thread and is sure to create a lingering pineapple aroma.
Bombardier beetles, though, have a whole different odor. Bombardiers make up a group of about twenty-five species of ground beetles that, basically, carry a can of Raid around on their rear ends. When pursued by an enemy, a chemical spray of quinones is forcefully emitted from glands at the end of the beetle's abdomen. Quinones are also emitted by some types of cockroaches and millipedes, none of which I have had the inclination to sniff. An audible "pop" accompanies the bombardments of some species of beetles.
Like skunk spray, the fragrance of the beetle's discharge has a wide range of personalities, depending on its concentration. Close up, at ground zero, it is truly noxious, running the gamut from fetid through acrid and then some. But at its mildest and most diffuse, I actually like it, for it is not unlike the scent of fresh pineapple. A jar that once held one of these beetles captive overnight retained the faint odor of pineapple for weeks. |
