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Granted, but I'm thinking more about how long the beetle can survive without access to air.



That's an aquatic beetle, a lot of those store their own air supply under their wings...


Oh, I didn't know that! I can't get to the citation, but per Wikipedia [1] Hydrophilidae, the family in which this beetle is classified, do have that capability. Whether even with an air bubble they can hold out long enough is a separate question, as is whether their also-mentioned ability to extract usable oxygen from ambient water would be helpful in this environment - but being able to carry air under their elytra would certainly improve their odds.

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrophilidae




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