whirligig

noun

• 1a toy that spins round, for example a top or windmill.
• another term for roundabout (sense 2 of the noun).
• a process or activity characterized by constant change or hectic activity:the whirligig of time

• 2 (also whirligig beetle) a small black predatory beetle which swims rapidly in circles on the surface of still or slow-moving water and dives when alarmed.

  • Family Gyrinidae: Gyrinus and other genera