Trap type affects dung beetle taxonomic and functional diversity in Bornean tropical forests

• Main Authors: Ong, Xin Rui, David, Hemprich-Bennett, Gray, Claudia, Kemp, Victoria, Chung, Arthur Y. C., Slade, Eleanor M.
• Other Authors: Asian School of the Environment
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2021
• Subjects: Science::Biological sciences::Ecology; Science::Geology; Biodiversity Survey; Scarabaeidae; Functional Traits; Southeast Asia; Sampling Method
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/153441
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Baited pitfall traps (BPTs) and flight intercept traps (FITs) are the most common methods employed for sampling dung beetle communities. These methods vary in their efficacy and are affected by factors such as the bait types used and the dispersal abilities of different dung beetle species. We present the first quantitative comparison of the community composition, taxonomic and functional diversity of dung beetles caught in human dung BPTs and FITs in Bornean tropical forests. Functional diversity metrics were calculated based on the three functional traits of nesting method, body length, and diel activity. We show that BPTs and FITs captured complementary communities with different functional traits, and that BPTs captured more functionally diverse communities. We therefore recommend using a combination of both BPTs and FITs for studies assessing the composition of dung beetles across habitat types. Our results also highlight that it is important to consider how trap type affects the trait composition of communities when relating dung beetle communities and functional traits to ecological functioning. We suggest modifications to FITs based on the design of harp traps to increase their effectiveness in capturing larger-bodied beetles.