Functional Role of Dung Beetles in Shaping Insect Biodiversity and Trophic Ecology
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64137/3108088X/IJAES-V1I2P104Keywords:
Dung beetles, Scarabaeinae, Ecosystem engineers, Insect biodiversity, Trophic ecology, Effect sizeAbstract
Dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) are key ecosystem engineers whose activities strongly influence insect biodiversity and trophic ecology. Through dung removal, nutrient cycling, soil bioturbation, suppression of dung-breeding pests, and secondary seed dispersal, dung beetles link detrital, herbivore, and predator food webs. This study synthesizes empirical field experiments, isotope tracer studies, trait-based analyses, and global meta-analyses to quantify the magnitude of dung beetle effects using standardized effect sizes. Results from large-scale meta-analyses demonstrate significant positive impacts on ecosystem functioning (mean Hedges’ g = 0.64), with particularly strong effects on dung removal (g = 0.86), trophic regulation (g = 0.71), and nutrient cycling (g = 0.59). Functional guilds differed markedly in their contributions, with tunneling species exerting the strongest influence on soil-mediated trophic pathways. These findings confirm dung beetles as keystone taxa whose conservation is essential for sustaining insect biodiversity and ecosystem multifunctionality.
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