Dung Beetles

[alftn]

The ones I want are native to the southeast, or at least to west tennessee as to were I remember them as from childhood...

There are some on my place, but would like to spread them out somemore with out collecting mine ....

 

[novatech]

The ones I want are native to the southeast, or at least to west tennessee as to were I remember them as from childhood...

There are some on my place, but would like to spread them out somemore with out collecting mine ....

The have wings and usually multiply on their own. You may want to question why they have not done so before going out and buying more. If all the right conditions are in place they should already be there.

 

[dun]

The ones I want are native to the southeast, or at least to west tennessee as to were I remember them as from childhood...

There are some on my place, but would like to spread them out somemore with out collecting mine ....

The have wings and usually multiply on their own. You may want to question why they have not done so before going out and buying more. If all the right conditions are in place they should already be there.

Pretty much my thoughts. LIke most any wild animal, if you have the proper habitat they will fill it.

 

[alftn]

This is Row crop country, lots of cotton, lots of cleaned up fence rows...

Things have changed from 40 or 50 years ago....

Not to talk about air planes spraying every thing a few years ago....

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

This is Row crop country, lots of cotton, lots of cleaned up fence rows...

Things have changed from 40 or 50 years ago....

Not to talk about air planes spraying every thing a few years ago....

But that's what the others are talking about. If your OWN bugs aren't multiplying under YOUR environment, why do you think PURCHASED bugs will do better? from a different environment.

 

[upfrombottom]

I could remember reading an article, awhile back, that Arkansas State was doing research on the effects of insecticides on dung beetle populations. I found the article but did not find any followup reports on their findings. I sent an e-mail to the Dept. asking for information on their findings and will post them here if I get a response.

Here is a copy of the article:

http://biology.astate.edu/Outreach/ASUintheNews/138.Dung beetles helpful.pdf

This is a copy of the response that I have gotten so far:

XXXXXXX. I got your email. I am currently out of the office and unable to respond until early next week.
Thanks for your interest in our dung beetle project. I will send an update shortly.
Sincerely,
Tanja McKay

I know I said that I would post any information I received, but the response that I got today is 107 pages long with no web address attached. If anyone would like to read it if you PM me your e-mail address I will forward it to you.

 

[TexasBred]

Wow...now that's an in depth study of dodo disposal. :shock:

 

[upfrombottom]

Wow...now that's an in depth study of dodo disposal. :shock:

Evidently they didn't get enough, because I was informed that they were starting another project on this subject this summer.

 

[beetleguy]

Folks,

If anyone is interested in buying Onthophagus gazella, "Gazelle Scarab", dung beetles I can collect them.

Pictures: http://bugguide.net/node/view/6180/bgimage

I actually collect and breed beetles, including dung beetles, to sell to zoos and insectariums for display. The dung beetles I work with are the larger, "showy" species but I have bred O. gazella before and could collect them easily.

Dung beetles are fine to ship between states but not to import from other countries (without a permit) - especially for release. Also, Jeanne is right - most dung beetles are area specific, especially some of our native species. Some are even animal specific where they tend to only work with one kind of dung. Gazella are probably the least specific out of the types that would actually make a difference in dung removal. There are some much smaller species that are generalists too but they are so small that they don't do much for the overall pattie.

Onthophagus gazella are actually originally from Africa and were imported into Texas in the 70s, lab reared, then the offspring were released. Now they are found across much of the south and for a small beetle they do a lot of work.

Dung beetles have become one of my favorites to work with. Also, I can try to ID some things if you post pictures.

Steven Barney
Louisiana
[email protected]

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Steve, thanks for that info. Do you think they could handle the North "cold"?

 

[beetleguy]

Hi Jeanne,

I'm not really sure. I don't know how long they can remain dormant during the winter but I know we have native species that do fine. They might overwinter as larvae and emerge as adults in the spring, like many other beetle species do.

The only other option I could think of would be to collect a group of them before it gets very cold and keep them protected from any hard freezes during the winter, like in a container in a basement, then release them in the spring. They should be able to handle cold but maybe not a deep freeze.

They seem to bury their eggs a foot or more below the ground - maybe less in very rocky areas, but that might be deep enough to keep any grubs alive till the spring.


Steven

 

[beetleguy]

The photos that Jogeephus posted back on page two..

The two beetles on the orange background: The larger one looks like it might be a female Onthophagus taurus - "Bull Headed Dung Beetle" (male has horns)
http://bugguide.net/node/view/131401/bgimage

The second one is a "Hister Beetle", for some reason also known as a "clown beetle". They are actually predators of other insects that are attracted to manure, including maggots.
http://bugguide.net/node/view/199499

The photo of the beetle on the hand - that is an Aphodiine dung beetle. There are tons of different species of those but they are all tiny beetles.
http://bugguide.net/node/view/110526/bgimage

 

[Chuckie]

Gotta love those Dung Beetles!!!!
Chuckie

 

[Chuckie]

In our area, it is dry and we are not seeing activity with the dung beetle. If the ground is dry in your area, they will stay underground. After the rains come, and soften up the soils, and make them moist again, you will begin to see the beetles come back and begin to tunnel.
I have found some rollers, the year before last, underneath the porchlight in the morning where they died. One was huge, which I compared to the pictures I found on the internet. It had a huge shovel shaped head! Then I have found some other rollers that were smaller than the very large one. Where were they going, and why do we not see them around alive?
I had horses several years ago, and I had rollers then. I wonder if the rollers need a more dry manure and almost with a formation to start the ball? The horse's manure was drier, with more of a segmented type dung.
I do not see how a beetle could make a ball out of a cow pattie if it tried!!!!!
Any of you with several horses in the pasture, see any rollers?
I think all of the ones we have are tunnelers.
Chuckie

 

[beetleguy]

If they were something you would call huge it was probably either:

Deltochilum gibbosum - "Humpback Dung Beetle"
http://bugguide.net/node/view/4533/bgimage

-or-

Dichotomius carolinus
http://bugguide.net/node/view/17255/bgimage



Steven

 

[jrk53]

I have been trying for almost a year to find a place in the US to obtain dung beetles - I am in Mass. and would LOVE them.
my vet says we had them when he was a kid - but no more.
I second the "paying the local kid to collect them and sell them".
has anyone found out how to obtain them?

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

http://rinconvitova.com/catalog_fly_control.pdf
There are lots of different kind. Before I purchased any, I would contact your local extension office & see if you can find out what kind SURVIVIES in your area.
All the hype about dewormers killing dung beetles is not accurate. If you use "feed-thru" products to kill eggs in the manure piles, than yes, that would probably kill the beetles.
We have dewormed twice a year with two different products each year since 1978 on this farm and we have dung beetles.

 

[beetleguy]

I am sometimes able to collect and sell some, but only during Spring and Summer.

Steven
Lafayette, LA

 

[beetleguy]

If anyone is interested in Dung Beetles let me know.

After a few years without many requests - this past year (for some reason) brought the most requests for scarabs I have had in a long time.

 

[Lucky_P]

Part of my first real off-farm job, as a college freshman(back around 1977, so before the advent of Ivermectin), was caring for a colony of dogs at the Vet. School, which were infected with Spirocerca lupi, a worm that utilizes dung beetles as an intermediate host, and chickens as a paratenic (secondary) host.
Life cycle diagram here:

https://els-jbs-prod-cdn.jbs.elsevierhealth.com/cms/attachment/5f22ead7-9910-44d9-8586-e0bebb09e536/gr1.jpg

Also kept colonies of dung beetles in big terra cotta pots of soil - which I fed feces collected from the infected dogs. Every so often, the University maintenance guys would come through spraying for roaches... and kill off the dung beetle colony, and we'd have to go out and collect more out of the cowpastures.