Bess beetles live together under the bark of decaying logs in a primitive social organization. Both the male and female process decaying wood as food and feed it to the larvae. The only other group of insects that exhibit a similar sharing of work between males and females occurs in termite societies. Bess beetle adults and larvae communicate by sounds that are audible to humans. The adult rubs its wings across rough patches on the abdomen, and the larva rubs its vestigial (degenerate) hind pair of legs against its middle legs.