The series of grooved lines in the tree trunk looks like a preconceived design and reminds me of work by the wonderful Norfolk artist Roger Ackling. From a central channel, incised vertically into the wood, a further 60 galleries spread horizontally on each side.
In truth, this pattern charts the lives of two generations of a remarkable insect. The vertical chamber was cut by a mother beetle, and at intervals down her linear home she deposited 120 eggs. Tiny larvae hatched from these, and set out gnawing their separate ways from the maternal chamber. You can see that, as the offspring progressed outwards, they also grew, because the calibre of their corresponding groove also expands.
