Comparison of spatial distribution patterns of dung-feeding scarabs (Coleoptera Scarabaeidae Geotrupidae) in wooded and open pastureland in the Mediterranean Dehesa area of the Iberian peninsula

The seasonal and spatial distributions of dung-feeding scarabs in an open pastureland and in wooded (holm oak) pastureland in a typical Mediterranean area of the western part of the Iberian Peninsula (Salamanca) were compared. Six pitfall traps baited with bovine dung were placed in each habitat according to a model by J. P. Lumaret. Only beetles in the families Scarabaeidae and Geotrupidae were studied because they are the most for 1 yr produced 6,909 specimens. Of the 18 species found, the largest beetles and biomass were concentrated mainly in the wooded habitat, especially in the summer. This constitutes a problem for dung removal because large amounts of dung remain in open pasturelands, possibly resulting in the impoverishment of such areas.