A Survey of the Dung Beetles in Cattle Manure on Pastures of an Organic and a Conventional Dairy Farm in New York State

Abstract

Dairy is an important part of New York state agriculture. Many dung beetle species live in pasture cattle manure. This study was a survey of the species of beetles (Scarabaeidae, Geotrupidae, Hydrophilidae, and Histeridae) in dairy cattle manure from pastures of two different farms, one conventional and one organic. Aphodius species, specifically A. granarius, A. haemorrhoidalis, and A. stercorus were the most numerous beetles (approximately 21% of the identified beetles), excluding the small, unidentified Hydrophilidae less than 2 mm in length. This contrasts with results of similar studies using the same protocol in North Carolina where Onthophagus taurus was the most abundant species of dung beetle on pastures, suggesting that latitude has a an effect on the composition of dung beetle communities.