Dung Beetle, manure; Burchell`s Zebra; Bontwagga; Equis burchelli; stripes; South Africa, Kwazulu; National Park, wild life; animal; travel; holiday; grazer; Hluhluwe; Zebra; white rhino; elephant; faecal material, roll manure; Dung beetles; Beetles (Coleoptera);
Description
Dung beetles play an important part in the removal and breakdown of dung and the recycling of nutrients into the soil. Dung beetles and their larvae generally feed on faecal material from a large number of herbivorous animals, although the extent of their relationship with dung depends on whether they are "rollers", "tunnelers" or "dwellers". Rollers are probably the best known group of dung beetles: male and female cooperatively roll a ball of dung away from a manure pat before burying it. Tunnelers on the other hand bury the dung underneath the dung pat, while dwellers neither roll nor bury dung, but live in the manure. The dung beetles intimate relationship with manure means that they play a great part in the breakdown of dung and the recycling of nutrients back into the soil, therefore improving soil structure and fertility. In fact, dung beetles also reduce the number of breeding sites for flies and other pests by removing dung pats - this is thought to be of special importance in agricultural systems, where farm livestock such as cattle could otherwise be infested. In fact, many countries have introduced dung beetles in order to reduce populations of potentially harmful insect pests. In Australia, for example, populations of the bush fly Musca vetustissima have been reduced by 80% following dung beetle introductions. In the United States, it has been estimated that dung beetles save the cattle industry just short of $400million annually by removing and recycling livestock faeces.
Close up of a small, metallic-green beetle (Thick-legged Flower Beetle, Oedemera nobilis) on a buttercup flower (Creeping Buttercup, Ranunculus repens)
David Knowles Photographer; dung beetle; insect; Dung-Beetle; beetles which feed partly or exclusively on faeces; Scarabaeinae and Aphodiinae; rollers; rolling dung into spherical balls; food source or brooding chambers; black or brown in colour; some are of metallic lustre; flattened; but stout body; toothed legs specialised for rolling dung; habitats; desert; farmland; forest; and grasslands; role in agriculture; they improve nutrient cycling and soil structure; Scarabaeus sacer (often referred to as scarab); enjoyed a sacred status among the ancient Egyptians.; The scarab was linked to Khepri he who has come into being"; the god of the setting sun
