Courtship of rove beetles in Ecuador rainforest

These predatory rove beetles (Leistotrophus versicolor, Staphylinidae) imitate dung or bird droppings to attract prey, namely flies. Moreover with glands in the tip of the abdomen they produce an odorous secretion that attracts flies. The species is called transvestite rove beetle because small males pretend to be females in order to fool the larger males and sneakily copulate with the females and eat flies. This footing from the tropical rainforest of Ecuador shows the courtship behavior with waving of the colored abdomen tip.