Читать книгу Practical Field Ecology - C. Philip Wheater - Страница 71

A dung beetle project's success will largely depend on the amount and length of time pitfall traps are deployed. It is recommended that a pilot study be conducted in the same location, and during the same season, for at least one entire trapping effort. Traps should be set and collected daily for a minimum of 8 days. A species accumulation curve should then be constructed. Species accumulation curves are easy to construct and are readily interpretable to give the researcher an indication of the minimum sampling effort required for an adequate inventory, which avoids incurring extra time and fieldwork costs.

Standard methods for pitfall traps usually employ dung suspended over a bucket which is placed into the ground with the lip of the bucket flush with the soil surface. One method of avoiding trap loss by other animals is to use pitfall traps with built‐in mesh enclosures. The trap is constructed from a one‐gallon sturdy container, such as a paint can with the lid placed on the container but the centre of the lid removed and replaced with strong chicken wire. This design means that even if the trap is disturbed, captured beetles remain inside the container and the sample will not be lost.

Sorting and identifying dung beetles to species can be tricky. Forging strong collaborations with scientists and museums in‐country allows access to holotype specimens found in their collections, and if export for further analyses are required these collaborations will ensure that the export process conforms with both national and international law. Roisin worked closely with National Museums Kenya in Nairobi and deposited specimens in their collection to leave a permanent record of Kenyan dung beetle diversity for future dung beetle enthusiasts.