Widespread application of broadcast baits with insect growth regulators used to control and eradicate fire ants in southeast Queensland has not halted their dominance and spread. Eradication efforts for fire ants have failed when infestations exceed 10, 000 ha or have been established for over a decade. Fire ants quickly re‐establish in treated control areas and establish in areas ‘prophylactically’ baited at the leading eradication edge. Broadcast baits may exacerbate negative outcomes while continuing unnecessary financial costs. To avoid accelerating the spread of fire ants at the eradication edge and stop their dominance in the control zones, we need to shift to targeted, species‐specific methods using integrated tactics, scientific testing, and community engagement.

Livestock agriculture is a primary driver of anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, with cattle dung acting as a significant source of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O). Dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) are critical ecosystem service providers that modify dung structure, yet their influence on specific GHG fluxes remains variable across different climatic regions and beetle assemblages. In Australia, where introduced beetle species are active year-round, their potential for GHG mitigation is poorly quantified. We investigated the impact of dung beetle activity on GHG (total, CO2, N2O and CH4) and ammonia (NH3) fluxes from cattle dung. Using 90-day chamber mesocosms, we compared emission profiles between pats colonised by a field-representative mix of four species (Euoniticellus intermedius, E. africanus, E. fulvus and Onthophagus granulatus) and beetle-free controls. Cumulative CH4 flux was 85% lower in beetle treatments compared to controls. Control pats exhibited distinct CH4 flux peaks at Day 6 and Day 16, whereas beetle-colonised pats maintained near-zero fluxes throughout the experiment. Conversely, beetles accelerated initial CO2 release, causing an earlier flux peak within the first 14 days compared to controls. Total greenhouse gas flux was nearly 18% lower when beetles were present. These findings indicate that dung beetle activity is associated with altered greenhouse gas flux patterns in cattle dung. The presence of active beetle populations suggests an inherent ecosystem service that may reduce the net methane footprint of grazing systems. Our study highlights the importance of considering invertebrate-mediated processes in agricultural greenhouse gas assessments. La ganader & iacute;a es uno de los principales motores de las emisiones antropog & eacute;nicas de gases de efecto invernadero (GEI), y el esti & eacute;rcol de vacuno act & uacute;a como una fuente significativa de di & oacute;xido de carbono (CO2), metano (CH4) y & oacute;xido nitroso (N2O). Los escarabajos peloteros (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) son proveedores cr & iacute;ticos de servicios ecosist & eacute;micos que modifican la estructura del esti & eacute;rcol; sin embargo, su influencia en los flujos espec & iacute;ficos de GEI sigue siendo variable en diferentes regiones clim & aacute;ticas y comunidades de escarabajos. En Australia, donde las especies de escarabajos introducidas est & aacute;n activas durante todo el a & ntilde;o, su potencial para la mitigaci & oacute;n de los GEI est & aacute; poco cuantificado. Investigamos el impacto de la actividad de los escarabajos peloteros en los flujos de GEI (totales, CO2, N2O y CH4) y de amon & iacute;aco (NH3) procedentes del esti & eacute;rcol de vacuno. Utilizando mesocosmos de c & aacute;mara de 90 d & iacute;as, comparamos los perfiles de emisi & oacute;n entre b & ntilde;igas colonizadas por una mezcla representativa de campo de cuatro especies (Euoniticellus intermedius, E. africanus, E. fulvus y Onthophagus granulatus) y controles libres de escarabajos. El flujo acumulado de CH4 fue un 85% menor en los tratamientos con escarabajos en comparaci & oacute;n con los controles. Las bo & ntilde;igas de control exhibieron picos distintos de flujo de CH4 en el D & iacute;a 6 y el D & iacute;a 16, mientras que las bo & ntilde;igas colonizadas por escarabajos mantuvieron flujos cercanos a cero durante todo el experimento. Por el contrario, los escarabajos aceleraron la liberaci & oacute;n inicial de CO2, provocando un pico de flujo m & aacute;s temprano dentro de los primeros 14 d & iacute;as en comparaci & oacute;n con los controles. El flujo total de gases de efecto invernadero fue casi un 18% menor cuando los escarabajos estaban presentes. Estos hallazgos indican que la actividad de los escarabajos peloteros est & aacute; asociada con patrones alterados de flujo de gases de efecto invernadero en el esti & eacute;rcol de vacuno. La presencia de poblaciones activas de escarabajos sugiere un servicio ecosist & eacute;mico inherente que puede reducir la huella neta de metano de los sistemas de pastoreo. Nuestro estudio destaca la importancia de considerar los procesos mediados por invertebrados en las evaluaciones de gases de efecto invernadero agr & iacute;colas. A pecu & aacute;ria & eacute; um dos principais motores das emiss & otilde;es antropog & ecirc;nicas de gases de efeito estufa (GEE), e o esterco de bovino atua como uma fonte significativa de di & oacute;xido de carbono (CO2), metano (CH4) e & oacute;xido nitroso (N2O). Os escaravelhos do esterco (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) s & atilde;o provedores cr & iacute;ticos de servi & ccedil;os ecossist & ecirc;micos que modificam a estrutura do esterco; no entanto, sua influ & ecirc;ncia nos fluxos espec & iacute;ficos de GEE continua sendo vari & aacute;vel em diferentes regi & otilde;es clim & aacute;ticas e comunidades de escaravelhos. Na Austr & aacute;lia, onde as esp & eacute;cies de escaravelhos introduzidas est & atilde;o ativas durante todo o ano, seu potencial para a mitiga & ccedil;& atilde;o dos GEE & eacute; pouco quantificado. Investigamos o impacto da atividade dos escaravelhos do esterco nos fluxos de GEE (totais, CO2, N2O e CH4) e de am & ocirc;nia (NH3) procedentes do esterco de bovino. Utilizando mesocosmos de c & acirc;mara de 90 dias, comparamos os perfis de emiss & atilde;o entre placas de esterco colonizadas por uma mistura representativa de campo de quatro esp & eacute;cies (Euoniticellus intermedius, E. africanus, E. fulvus e Onthophagus granulatus) e controles livres de escaravelhos. O fluxo acumulado de CH4 foi 85% menor nos tratamentos com escaravelhos em compara & ccedil;& atilde;o com os controles. As placas de esterco de controle exibiram picos distintos de fluxo de CH4 no Dia 6 e no Dia 16, enquanto as placas colonizadas por escaravelhos mantiveram fluxos pr & oacute;ximos a zero durante todo o experimento. Pelo contr & aacute;rio, os escaravelhos aceleraram a libera & ccedil;& atilde;o inicial de CO2, provocando um pico de fluxo mais precoce dentro dos primeiros 14 dias em compara & ccedil;& atilde;o com os controles. O fluxo total de gases de efeito estufa foi quase 18% menor quando os escaravelhos estavam presentes. Esses achados indicam que a atividade dos escaravelhos do esterco est & aacute; associada a padr & otilde;es alterados de fluxo de gases de efeito estufa no esterco de bovino. A presen & ccedil;a de popula & ccedil;& otilde;es ativas de escaravelhos sugere um servi & ccedil;o ecossist & ecirc;mico inerente que pode reduzir a pegada l & iacute;quida de metano dos sistemas de pastoreio. Nosso estudo destaca a import & acirc;ncia de considerar os processos mediados por invertebrados nas avalia & ccedil;& otilde;es de gases de efeito estufa agr & iacute;colas.

Dung beetles are one of the most charismatic animal taxa. Their familiarity as ecosystem service providers is clear, but they also play a range of roles in a variety of different ecosystems worldwide. Here, we give an overview of the current state of dung beetle research and the changes in the prevalence of topics in a collated corpus of 4,145 peer-reviewed articles of dung beetle research, spanning from 1930 until 2024. We used a range of text-analysis tools, including topic modelling, to assess how the peer-reviewed literature on dung beetles has changed over this period. Most of the literature is split into three distinct, but related discourses-the agri/biological topics, the ecological topics, and the taxonomic topics. Publications on the 'effect of veterinary chemicals' and 'nesting behaviour' showed the largest drop over time, whereas articles relating to 'ecosystem function' had a meteoric rise from a low presence before the 2000's to being the most prevelant topic of dung beetle research in the last two decades. Research into dung beetles is global, but is dominated by Europe and North America. However, the research from South America, Africa, and Australia ranges wider in topics. Research in temperate and tropical mixed forests, as well as grasslands, savanna and shrublands dominated the corpus, as would be expected from a group of species directly associated with large mammals. Our assessment of dung beetle research comes when ecosystem service provision is becoming more important and more dominant in the literature globally. This review therefore should be of direct interest to dung beetle researchers, as well as researchers working in agricultural, ecological, and taxonomic arenas globally. Research worldwide and across agri/biological, ecological, and taxonomic discourses is imperative for a continued understanding of how dung beetles and their ecosystem services are modified across rapidly changing natural and agricultural landscapes.

Background We studied the occurrence of two sympatric wallabies, the red-necked pademelon (Thylogale thetis) and the red-legged pademelon (T. stigmatica) in northeastern New South Wales, Australia in relation to structural habitat attributes. At our study site, both species inhabit closed forest environments and have overlapping distributions, but T. thetis leaves the forest at night to graze adjacent grassy forest edges whereas T. stigmatica remains within the forest and browses forest vegetation. The objectives of the study were to investigate how structural attributes of two forest types, wet sclerophyll forest and rainforest, relate to the fine-scale occurrence of these two wallaby species within the forested environment. Methods We gathered occurrence data from 48 camera trap stations divided equally between rainforest and wet sclerophyll forest. At each camera point, we also measured a range of structural habitat attributes to determine habitat affiliations for the two Thylogale species. Principal component analyses were used to describe major trends in habitat, and generalised linear models were used to describe the efficacy of the variables in predicting habitat occurrence of each species. Results The number of occurrences of Thylogale thetis was significantly greater than occurrences of T. stigmatica, which was driven by significantly greater occurrences of T. thetis in wet sclerophyll forest. There was both spatial and temporal partitioning between the two species; there was a significant difference in the occurrences of the two species at individual cameras and T. stigmatica had a different activity schedule than T. thetis in wet sclerophyll forest, where the latter reached its greatest rate of occurrence. At a finer (camera station) scale, occurrences of T. thetis increased with proximity to roads and grassy edges and at sites that were less rocky and less steep. T. stigmatica occurrence increased in the presence of rainforest elements like vines, palms and ferns, more ground-level cover and tree-fall gaps and at sites with fewer emergent eucalypts. Conclusion Our findings have implications for managing these pademelons and their habitats. T. thetis is a common species that was encountered more often than T. stigmatica, and it responded positively to human disturbance like roadsides and grassy edges, presumably because these areas provided good grazing opportunities. By comparison, T. stigmatica is a threatened species, and it responded to natural disturbance like tree-fall gaps where lateral cover was greater, and where rainforest food plants may be more abundant. Our results suggest, therefore, that conservation of the threatened T. stigmatica requires the preservation of intact rainforest.

Since 1968, the Australian Dung Beetle Project has carried out field releases of 43 deliberately introduced dung beetle species for the biological control of livestock dung and dung-breeding pests. Of these, 23 species are known to have become established. For most of these species, sufficient time has elapsed for population expansion to fill the extent of their potential geographic range through both natural and human-assisted dispersal. Consequently, over the last 20 years, extensive efforts have been made to quantify the current distribution of these introduced dung beetles, as well as the seasonal and spatial variation in their activity levels. Much of these data and their associated metadata have remained unpublished, and they have not previously been synthesized into a cohesive dataset. Here, we collate and report data from the three largest dung beetle monitoring projects from 2001 to 2022. Together, these projects encompass data collected from across Australia, and include records for all 23 species of established dung beetles introduced for biocontrol purposes. In total, these data include 22,718 presence records and 213,538 absence records collected during 10,272 sampling events at 546 locations. Most presence records (97%) include abundance data. In total, 1,752,807 dung beetles were identified as part of these data. The distributional occurrence and abundance data can be used to explore questions such as factors influencing dung beetle species distributions, dung beetle biocontrol, and insect-mediated ecosystem services. These data are provided under a CC-BY-NC 4.0 license and users are encouraged to cite this data paper when using the data.

Cattle diet plays a crucial role in the quality of dung and the consequent reproductive capacity of dung beetles. We investigated how three pasture types (improved native, forage oat and inter‐sown rye/clover) influence the dung quality, the number of broods and reproductive output measured as brood size (dry weight and ellipsoid volume), development time and F 1 progeny size (beetle length and pronotum width) of Onthophagus binodis , Euoniticellus africanus and Euoniticellus intermedius . Nitrogen content was highest in rye/clover‐derived dung compared with improved native and forage oat. Improved native‐derived dung had the highest carbon, energy, organic matter, pH and insoluble non‐starch polysaccharide content, whereas forage oat had the lowest contents. Forage oat had the highest moisture content, ash and soluble non‐starch polysaccharide content compared with the other pastures. Progeny length was influenced by pasture type, with female E. intermedius, and males and females of O. binodis being 11.4%, 11.2% and 7.3% longer, respectively, in rye/clover‐derived dung than forage oat dung. The pronotum width of O. binodis F 1 progeny was 9.8% wider when produced from rye/clover dung than forage oat. Rye/clover‐ and improved native‐derived dung provided the best resource for dung beetle reproduction compared with forage oat dung. Based on this study, cattle diet is important for consideration when evaluating reproductive ability and progeny measurements. Cattle diet should be further investigated as only three pasture types were investigated out of a numerous number of species and combinations.

The environment surrounding invertebrates can influence the physiology of larval offspring. Dung beetles provide several significant ecological functions, including dung breakdown, fly control and nutrient cycling. Cattle diet influences the chemical and physical constituents of dung, of which pH is considered critical. Few studies have assessed this, though a pH of 6.3 is the lowest threshold for dung beetle reproduction. We investigated the effects of an introduced and widespread dung beetle (Onthophagus binodis) on cattle dung pH (7.3, 6.0 and 5.0) and pH on O. binodis reproduction, offspring phenotypic traits and development time. Dung beetle presence increased the Delta pH (more alkaline) within dung pads after 96 h. Dung beetles produced broods in dung with a pH of 5.0, though in fewer numbers compared with the other pH treatments. Larval development was delayed in pH 5.0 with an average of 50 days compared with 44 days in dung with pH 6, 7, and the control (7.3). Smaller broods (ellipsoid volume [mm(3)]) were produced in dung with a pH of 5.0 compared with pH 6.0 and 7.0, and offspring emerging from broods produced from dung with a pH of 6.0 were larger compared with the other pH treatments. Our results show that dung pH is important for brood production and progeny phenotypic traits of O. binodis, an agricultural ecosystem engineer and that there is no experimental evidence to support the suggestion that dung pH influences the provisioning of broods in this species.

Fungi are among the most diverse and ecologically important kingdoms in life. However, the distributional ranges of fungi remain largely unknown as do the ecological mechanisms that shape their distributions(1,2). To provide an integrated view of the spatial and seasonal dynamics of fungi, we implemented a globally distributed standardized aerial sampling of fungal spores(3). The vast majority of operational taxonomic units were detected within only one climatic zone, and the spatiotemporal patterns of species richness and community composition were mostly explained by annual mean air temperature. Tropical regions hosted the highest fungal diversity except for lichenized, ericoid mycorrhizal and ectomycorrhizal fungi, which reached their peak diversity in temperate regions. The sensitivity in climatic responses was associated with phylogenetic relatedness, suggesting that large-scale distributions of some fungal groups are partially constrained by their ancestral niche. There was a strong phylogenetic signal in seasonal sensitivity, suggesting that some groups of fungi have retained their ancestral trait of sporulating for only a short period. Overall, our results show that the hyperdiverse kingdom of fungi follows globally highly predictable spatial and temporal dynamics, with seasonality in both species richness and community composition increasing with latitude. Our study reports patterns resembling those described for other major groups of organisms, thus making a major contribution to the long-standing debate on whether organisms with a microbial lifestyle follow the global biodiversity paradigms known for macroorganisms(4,5).

Novel methods for sampling and characterizing biodiversity hold great promise for re-evaluating patterns of life across the planet. The sampling of airborne spores with a cyclone sampler, and the sequencing of their DNA, have been suggested as an efficient and well-calibrated tool for surveying fungal diversity across various environments. Here we present data originating from the Global Spore Sampling Project, comprising 2,768 samples collected during two years at 47 outdoor locations across the world. Each sample represents fungal DNA extracted from 24 m3 of air. We applied a conservative bioinformatics pipeline that filtered out sequences that did not show strong evidence of representing a fungal species. The pipeline yielded 27,954 species-level operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Each OTU is accompanied by a probabilistic taxonomic classification, validated through comparison with expert evaluations. To examine the potential of the data for ecological analyses, we partitioned the variation in species distributions into spatial and seasonal components, showing a strong effect of the annual mean temperature on community composition.

Herbivore dung quality (physical and chemical parameters) varies between animal species and animal diet which is influenced by seasonal fluctuations and farm management practices. Subsequently, this influences the reproductive success of dung beetles. In Australian pasture systems, how the introduced dung beetle assemblage interacts in the field with cattle dung derived from different resources is unknown. This study quantifies the colonization by dung beetles (abundance, species richness and evenness) and removal of cattle dung derived from three common temperate pasture systems (improved native, forage oat and rye/clover pasture, henceforth dung type) over 24 h for 12 months. From the three dung types, 13 species of dung beetle were captured. Abundance and species richness were influenced by month and transect, with weak evidence for differences between dung types influencing overall abundance: Onthophagus binodis (49.7%), Aphodius fimetarius (24.4%) and Labarrus lividus (17.1%) were the most abundant species. Dung removal (organic matter) was influenced by month and dung type, with more dung buried in improved native (23.9 g) and rye/clover (24.7 g) derived dung compared with forage oat (12.3 g) dung. Dung beetle abundance was positively correlated with removal of all dung types, with O. binodis biomass significantly influencing dung removal. This study showed that diet of bovine animals weakly influences the abundance of a local dung beetle assemblage, warranting further investigation on the influence of other dung types in different regions. Improvements to reporting of pasture species and growth stage is recommended for comparisons between dung derived sources.

Language barriers can impede the dissemination of research findings, restrict collaboration and exclude non-English-speaking researchers from the global scientific community. To overcome this challenge, we explore the potential of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) text generators to assist non-anglophone researchers in producing high-quality academic texts for publication in scientific journals, with a focus on the field of ecological research. These tools can produce grammatically correct, coherent and contextually appropriate text, improving scientific communication quality. Improving scientific communication is vital in Ecology, where research findings can have important implications for the environment and public policy. GenAI text generators can generate summaries of research findings, abstracts and social media posts promoting research findings. Nonetheless, researchers must exercise caution and use these tools together with human review and editing to ensure accuracy and clarity. As natural language processing and machine learning continue to evolve, the use of GenAI text generators in scientific communication is poised to become increasingly important.

Data sharing not applicable - no new data generated.

Subject and geolocation of study for manuscripts published in Austral Ecology from different countries in Volume 46 and 47. The data that support the findings of this study are openly available from publications published on the Austral Ecology website, Volume 46 and Volume 47 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/loi/14429993. Appendix S1. Appendix S2. Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.

Macadamia spp. are native to Australia and have significant commercial value worldwide for their edible nuts. Integrated pest management (IPM) can be challenging in Australia because macadamia is a native plant cultivated commercially in its native range alongside its native insect pests and their natural enemies. Attaining viable commercial yields of macadamia in Australia has historically relied heavily upon the use of chemical insecticides, including organophosphates, and a shift away from reliance on these practices has not yet happened. Amblypelta spp. have historically been the pests of greatest concern to the Australian macadamia industry and that has not changed, but the make-up of the other major and minor pests has changed over time. More recently, the more southern-growing regions have experienced increases in Cercotingis decoris, Proteatingis howardi, and Kuschelorhynchus macadamiae, and there are currently no long-term viable control options for these species. The Australian macadamia pests, Cryptophlebia ombrodelta and Acanthococcus ironsidei, not necessarily of major concern in Australia, have spread to macadamias in other countries and have become significant pests as they do not have the corresponding native natural enemies. There are critical gaps in the identification of macadamia pest species and their natural enemies, as well as an understanding of their biology and ecology, distribution, host preferences, and movement. The identified knowledge gaps need to be addressed to support IPM in macadamia, both in Australia and internationally.

Background The Black Soldier Fly larvae (BSFL) are a source of nutrients and bioactive compounds in broiler diets. Some components of the BSFL may serve as a prebiotic or may impact the intestinal microbiota of the broilers by other modes of action, which in turn can affect the health and performance of broilers. Here, we investigate the impact of up to 20% BSFL in broiler diets on the diversity and composition of the broiler’s microbiota. Methods Four hundred broilers were fed five iso-nutritious experimental diets with increasing levels of BSFL meal reaching 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20% in the finisher diets. Eight caecal content samples coming from each of the eight replicates per treatment were collected at two time points (day 21 and day 42) for DNA extraction and sequencing of the V3–V4 regions using Illumina MiSeq 2 × 300 bp pair-end sequencing with 341f and 805r primers. Analysis of variance and Spearman’s correlation were performed, while QIIME2, DADA2, and Calypso were used for data analysis. Results When broilers were 21 days of age, the abundance of two groups of sequence variants representing Enterococcus and unclassified Christensenellaceae was significantly lower (p-value = 0.048 and p-value = 0.025, respectively) in the 20% BSFL group compared to the 0% BSFL group. There was no relevant alteration in the microbiota diversity at that stage. On day 42, the Spearman correlation analysis demonstrated that the sequence variants representing the genus Coprococcus showed a negative relationship with the BSFL inclusion levels (p-value = 0.043). The sequence variants representing the genus Roseburia and Dehalobacterium demonstrated a positive relationship with the BSFL dietary inclusion (p-value = 0.0069 and p-value = 0.0034, respectively). There was a reduction in the dissimilarity index (ANOSIM) caused by the 20% BSFL dietary inclusion. Conclusion The addition of up to 20% BSFL in broiler diets did not affect the overall caeca microbiota diversity or composition at day 21. On day 42, there was a reduction in the beta diversity caused by the 20% BSFL dietary inclusion. The abundance of the bacterial group Roseburia was increased by the BSFL dietary inclusion, and it may be beneficial to broiler immunity and performance.

AbstractOrganisms naturally experience diurnal temperature fluctuations and variable extreme environmental events rather than only static thermal regimes. Therefore, experimental studies that use only static mean daily, monthly or yearly temperatures overlook the possible influence of diurnal temperature fluctuations. Exposure to fluctuating temperatures enables an organism to perform more ‘naturally’ as they have a period of recovery, whereas under constant temperature, they do not have thermal recovery periods. This study compares the impacts of fluctuating and constant temperatures on the fitness and demographic parameters of the pea aphid,Acyrthosiphon pisum. We use four fluctuating temperature regimes that are increased by + 0°C, + 2°C, + 4°C and + 5°C from field-recorded, fluctuating base temperatures and four constant temperatures of 19°C, 21°C, 23°C and 24°C as treatments and also use a control temperature of 25°C. We find thatA. pisumexhibited faster development, quicker generation time (GT), lower population doubling time (DT), increased intrinsic rate of increase (rm) and a finite rate (λ) under warming conditions. In contrast, adult longevity, survival period, fecundity, net reproductive rate (R0), age-specific survivorship (lx) and age-specific fecundity (mx) were negatively affected by warming. The fluctuating thermal regimes improved overall fitness and all demographic parameters of both aphid species; therefore, we identify that daily fluctuating temperatures play a vital role in monitoring and predicting natural population dynamics. These results have implications for the experimental forecasting of natural population dynamics under climate change and global warming predictions.

Traits are key for understanding the environmental responses and ecological roles of organisms. Trait approaches to functional ecology are well established for plants, whereas consistent frameworks for animal groups are less developed. Here we suggest a framework for the study of the functional ecology of animals from a trait-based response-effect approach, using dung beetles as model system. Dung beetles are a key group of decomposers that are important for many ecosystem processes. The lack of a trait-based framework tailored to this group has limited the use of traits in dung beetle functional ecology. We review which dung beetle traits respond to the environment and affect ecosystem processes, covering the wide range of spatial, temporal and biological scales at which they are involved. Dung beetles show trait-based responses to variation in temperature, water, soil properties, trophic resources, light, vegetation structure, competition, predation and parasitism. Dung beetles' influence on ecosystem processes includes trait-mediated effects on nutrient cycling, bioturbation, plant growth, seed dispersal, other dung-based organisms and parasite transmission, as well as some cases of pollination and predation. We identify 66 dung beetle traits that are either response or effect traits, or both, pertaining to six main categories: morphology, feeding, reproduction, physiology, activity and movement. Several traits pertain to more than one category, in particular dung relocation behaviour during nesting or feeding. We also identify 136 trait-response and 77 trait-effect relationships in dung beetles. No response to environmental stressors nor effect over ecological processes were related with traits of a single category. This highlights the interrelationship between the traits shaping body-plans, the multi-functionality of traits, and their role linking responses to the environment and effects on the ecosystem. Despite current developments in dung beetle functional ecology, many knowledge gaps remain, and there are biases towards certain traits, functions, taxonomic groups and regions. Our framework provides the foundations for the thorough development of trait-based dung beetle ecology. It also serves as an example framework for other taxa.

Dung removal by macrofauna such as dung beetles is an important process for nutrient cycling in pasturelands. Intensification of farming practices generally reduces species and functional diversity of terrestrial invertebrates, which may negatively affect ecosystem services. Here, we investigate the effects of cattle-grazing intensification on dung removal by dung beetles in field experiments replicated in 38 pastures around the world. Within each study site, we measured dung removal in pastures managed with low- and high-intensity regimes to assess between-regime differences in dung beetle diversity and dung removal, whilst also considering climate and regional variations. The impacts of intensification were heterogeneous, either diminishing or increasing dung beetle species richness, functional diversity, and dung removal rates. The effects of beetle diversity on dung removal were more variable across sites than within sites. Dung removal increased with species richness across sites, while functional diversity consistently enhanced dung removal within sites, independently of cattle grazing intensity or climate. Our findings indicate that, despite intensified cattle stocking rates, ecosystem services related to decomposition and nutrient cycling can be maintained when a functionally diverse dung beetle community inhabits the human-modified landscape.

The diel activity of dung beetles is poorly understood in Australia. Understanding diel activity is fundamental to understanding the ecology and management of these insects. The diel activity is typically measured using ground-based pitfall traps, which require manual changing. Here we showcase a time sorting pitfall trap (TSPT) that allows for automated time sorted sampling of dung beetle communities to help investigate diel activity and determine abiotic triggers of diel activity. Testing was undertaken to determine the following: 1) Can the TSPT capture dung beetles at eight (3-hr interval) time points throughout a 24-hr period? 2) How efficiently can the TSPT capture dung beetles compared to a ground-based pan trap? 3) How does the height of the TSPT (standing vs. buried) affect the species diversity and abundance? We found that the TSPT successfully captured dung beetles at different time intervals, providing an assessment of beetle activity. We provide examples from two locally abundant dung beetles species, Labarrus lividus (Olivier, 1789) (Aphodiinae) and Onthophagus binodis (Thunberg, 1818) (Scarabaeinae). The height of the TSPT negatively influenced species diversity and abundance compared to ground-based pan traps. When we compared the results of pan traps and the equivalent of a buried TSPT (TSPT lid with pan trap underneath set at ground height), no difference was detected in overall species diversity, yet abundance was still reduced. When the height of the TSPT was reduced, only 20% of the abundance was captured compared to the ground pan trap. Overall, the TSPT worked for the intended purpose of measuring diel activity though it should be buried or have its height reduced to improve capture rate.