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)

Mary Auld author Hannah Bailey illustrator Sally-Ann Spence editor

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Mama Makes Books

Publishing:2nd Oct '25

£10.99

This title is due to be published on 2nd October, and will be despatched as soon as possible.

Small, Shiny Dung Beetle cover

Follow a female dung beetle meeting her mate on a fresh pile of elephant poo, a common dating site for a dung beetle, and learn about its life cycle and the super-strength it takes to keep the planet tidy.

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.

ISBN: 9781916780149

Dimensions: 230mm x 230mm x 10mm

Weight: 321g

28 pages