References in Popular Culture
The pinacate beetle can be seen in the Sergio Leone classic western movie For a Few Dollars More, starring Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Gian Maria Volontè. In the scene just before the climactic final shootout between Colonel Douglas Mortimer (Van Cleef) and Indio (Volantè), Indio, while seated at a wooden table, being held at gunpoint by one of his gang members, smashes a pinacate beetle that scampers across the table in front of him.
In another Clint Eastwood movie, The Outlaw Josey Wales, Eastwood's character (Josey Wales) has a habit of spitting tobacco juice on several objects throughout the movie, including a hound dog's head, a dead assassin's forehead, and a pinacate beetle.
Off-road motorcycle riders, when discussing a particular machine, may refer to "stinkbug" handling when the machine has a front-low, rear-high feel to it, alluding to the pinacate beetle's defensive posture.
Read more about this topic: Pinacate Beetle
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