An Experiment on Dung Removal by Aphodius Larvae (Scarabaeidae) and Earthworms

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Abstract
Cattle dung pats from the field, initially without Aphodius larvae, were transferred to tubs with clean sand or garden soil. The experiment included 4 treatments: (1) pats on sand (controls); (2) pats on sand, 95 A. rufipes L. larvae added per pat; (3) pats on soil, 35-40 earthworms (mostly Lumbricus terrestris L.) added per pat; (4) pats on soil, 85 Aphodius larvae and 35-40 worms added per pat. The open tubs were placed outdoors for 6 wk. The controls lost about 16% of their organic matter (averaged over the duration of the experiment). In treatment (2) loss of organic matter attributable to larvae was 0.62 g/larvae, i.e., 6-7 times the larval assimilation. Burial of organic matter contributed about 40% of this loss. In treatment (3) 0.75 g organic matter/g earthworm were lost through earthworm activity, under certain assumptions. The decrease in organic matter of pats subjected to treatment (4) indicated a simple additive effect of larvae and earthworms, without interactions.

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