Plant Growth Enhancement
Resulting from their feeding and nesting behaviour dung beetles have a significant role in plant and pasture health and growth. The way’s the beetles can affect plants is through secondary seed dispersal and nutrient recycling (Nichols et al. 2008).
Contained in the manure of animals is undigested fibre and seeds. In ruminant animals the seeds often come from varieties of grass. Dung beetles help facilitate diplochlory; according to Vander Wall and Longland (2004) the two phases of dispersion have their own benefits. With phase one distributing the seeds across vast areas and phase two which is performed by the dung beetles moves the dispersed seeds to more suitable microsites which are more suitable to germination .
The second way dung beetles improve vegetation health is through the recycling of nutrients. As discussed on the nutrient recycling page (see nutrient recycling page) the beetles are capable of reintroducing large amounts of organically available N and other limiting nutrients to soils increasing plant growth as a result(Bertone et al. 2006; Nichols et al. 2008).
Contained in the manure of animals is undigested fibre and seeds. In ruminant animals the seeds often come from varieties of grass. Dung beetles help facilitate diplochlory; according to Vander Wall and Longland (2004) the two phases of dispersion have their own benefits. With phase one distributing the seeds across vast areas and phase two which is performed by the dung beetles moves the dispersed seeds to more suitable microsites which are more suitable to germination .
The second way dung beetles improve vegetation health is through the recycling of nutrients. As discussed on the nutrient recycling page (see nutrient recycling page) the beetles are capable of reintroducing large amounts of organically available N and other limiting nutrients to soils increasing plant growth as a result(Bertone et al. 2006; Nichols et al. 2008).