The cool shade of an oasis provides habitat for animals that live nowhere else. After dark, a rush of air may be caused by the passing of a western yellow bat, who roosts only in palms. Dinapate wrightii, who lives exclusively in palm oases. The larvae of the Dinapate beetle spends about five years chewing tunnels within the trunk of a desert fan palm. The chewing is so loud that flickers use the noise to locate the larvae.
Successful larvae pupate within the trunk then chew their way out.
Because their rear end is wider than their front end, they exit going backwards to avoid getting stuck. Emerging in June, males and females mate and then die within a few weeks. Eventually these beetles can kill a palm, but they only inhabit older trees. Giant palm boring beetles keep the palm population young and vibrant. The presence of these beetles is actually a sign of a healthy oasis.