Dung beetles attracted to feces of Japanese black bear (Ursus thibetanus japonicus)

Abstract

We studied the fauna and the seasonal and diel activities of dung beetles that use the feces of the Japanese black bear (Ursus thibetanus japonicus) in Ashikawa, Yamanashi and Okutama, Tokyo. We recorded 18 species that are widely distributed and have been recorded in other mammal feces. Among these 18 species, the adults of 5 species were observed from spring to autumn, while the remaining 13 species were observed in a specific period. The proportions of the 10 species captured by bait traps confirmed that 5 species visited the feces diurnally and 4 species did so nocturnally. However, the diel visiting pattern of Onthophagus lenzii changed seasonally. We divided the 18 species into 2 functional groups: dwellers and tunnellers. Of these, 10 tunneller species were usually observed in the soil under or around feces and 8 dweller species were observed on or inside feces. The most common species, such as Onthophagus artipennis, O. ater, and Caccobius jessoensis, were tunnellers who visited the feces diurnally.