Dung Beetles

[pakin]

A few days ago there was a mention of knowing where to obtain dung beetles. Please share this info. I remember dung beetles on my grandfather's ranch many years ago in South TX.

We are in the process of pasturing chickens, but I'd like to add dung beetles. While we are organic, most of my neighbors are not. Do you think their herbicides, pesticides, etc. would kill out any beetles brought in?

Thanks, Pat Akin

[Robert D Bard]

I had a friend that felt sorry for her cows and put
insecticide ear tags on her cows and all the dung
beetles disappeared - never to be seen again. I
suspect they died.
Robert D Bard

[Eden's Garden]

I own a retail delivery service of organic goods and natural animal feeds, etc. I us an insectary where I can get dung beetles, and just about any other beneficial insect you want.

They come in a "starter colony" that is about $100. If it is flies you are trying to control, have you tried the parasites in combo with nematodes that are targeted to fly larvae? Also, the disposable traps work great. They tend to run about $16 each. Let me know if I can help.

Marie Tedei
Eden's Organic Garden Center

[pakin]

Thanks for the info. I'd like to start the dung beetles, but if my neighbors' chemicals kill them off...

One neighbor was bragging to my daughter that they'd gone organic. Had ammonium sulfate spread on their 20 acres...wondered why it killed her son's worm farm...At least they're thinking organic...just need some help!

Pat Akin

[Robert D Bard]

I want the dung beetles, but with this drought will
there be a problem getting them started?
Starter colony ? How does this work? How big an
area will one colony service?
Please contact me privately.
Robert D Bard

[dicksie]

There is a great article in the July '05 issue of The Horse magazine titled Dung Beetles. Among other interesting information, it quotes Dr. Bill Clymer from Amarillo, TX, who says that a 20-30 pound cattle pile can be totally gone within 24 hours. The article refers to how different kinds of chemical wormers can kill the population, but doesn't say anything about other chemicals.

[Dchall_San_Antonio]

You should know that each animal has its own species of insects that decompose their dung. Asian cattle have different dung beetles than African or European cattle. Goats, sheep, dogs, bison, and chickens all have different species of dung decomposers. If you are going to buy insects, be sure you get what you need.

Unless you have exotic livestock, all you should need is to stop using chemical insecticides and dewormers to get the beetles to return. Dung beetles can find the source.

[Robert D Bard]

Dave: I have never used chemicals of any kind on
this farm and it has not been farmed since the early
60's. I believe I do have a few dung beetles as some
cow piles dissapear rather quickly, but not all of them.
As far as the goat manure, nothing is happening. If
different types of dung beetles are attracted to specific
types of manure, please give them my address as they
have not found our farm.
Seriously, are there companies that provide different
types of dung bettles?
When we were in east TX we had beetles that showed
up and could destroy a fresh pile of horse manure in
about 10 minutes. The pile would start to move or
almost vibrate as they attached it from below and took
the manure under ground. We don't have that variety
on our farm at this time.
Robert D Bard

[dicksie]

Here's a link to the article I referenced: http://thehorse.com/viewarticle.aspx?ID=5851

[Dchall_San_Antonio]

Here are some more links

http://www.esi.utexas.edu/people/REU/dung.htm

http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~dick/soil/web/

There used to be more but I guess those students moved on.

Good people to track down and talk to about different species and where to get them would be Drs Pat or Dick Richardson at UT Austin.

[RobertB]

dicksie wrote: Here's a link to the article I referenced: http://thehorse.com/viewarticle.aspx?ID=5851
Thanks for the info! The most useful part will be this information:
Quote: Dewormers like Quest with moxidectin aren't as lethal to immature beetles--the horse's manure will be toxic to beetles for about three days following deworming. If you treat with an ivermectin product, however, the manure might be toxic to young beetles for two to six weeks.
Try as I may, I'm not going to be able to convince folks around here (including my wife, unfortunately) not to worm their horses. But at least I can steer them toward the least bad solution.

On the other hand, our "organic by benign neglect" program may be paying off again -- since the horses are healthy, we haven't found time to buy chemical wormer, which may be why the horses are healthy...