Abstract
Species composition, distribution patterns and endemism are outlined for the dung beetles in the ecoregions of the western slopes of the moist South Western Ghats, South India. Among the 142 dung beetle species known, 35 are endemic to the Western Ghats; 29 are endemic to the moist South Western Ghats; 25 are regionally endemic to the South Western Ghats montane rain forests ecoregion; and one each to the Malabar Coast moist deciduous forest ecoregion and the South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests ecoregion. Five species, including the 3 flightless species, are local endemics to the upper montane tropical montane cloud forests. The montane rain forests ecoregion has the highest number of endemics in the moist south Western Ghats and the moist deciduous forests ecoregion and Malabar Coast moist deciduous forest ecoregion have the lowest levels of endemism. Of the 137 dung beetle species known prior to the deforestation and habitat modification of the region, only 87 have been collected recently.References
Anu, A. (2006) Entomofaunal Dynamics and Biochemistry of Litter Decomposition in an Evergreen Forest with Special Reference to Systematics of Dung Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeinae). Ph D. Thesis, University of Calicut, 146 pp.
Arrow, G.J. (1931) The Fauna of British India including Ceylon and Burma, Coleoptera: Lamellicornia (Coprinae). Taylor and Francis, London, 428 pp.
Atree (2009) Conservation outcomes, Western Ghats, Available from www.cepf.net/Documents/WesternGhats_outcomes_map.pdf. Accessed on 10 September 2010.
Balthasar, V. (1963) Monographie der Scarabaeidae und Aphodiidae der Palaearktischen und Orientalischen Region (Coleoptera: Lamellicornia). Verlag der Tschechoslowakischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Prague Volume I, 391 pp; Volume II, 627 pp.
Balthasar, V. (1974) Neue arten der gattung Onthophagus aus der orientalischen und aethiopischen region. Acta entomologica bohemoslovaca, 71, 182–186.
Bruijnzeel, L.A. & Proctor, J. (1995) Hydrology and biogeochemistry of tropical montane cloud forests: what do we really know? In: Hamilton, L.S., Juvik, J.O. & Scatena, F.N. (eds.), Tropical Montane Cloud Forests. Ecological Studies, 110, 38–78.
Cambefort, Y. (1985) Les especes orientales du genre Cleptocaccobius (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae). Revue Francaise d’Entomologie, 7 (3), 125–130.
Frey, G. (1975) Neue Onthophagen aus Südindien und Afrika. Entomologische Arbeiten aus dem Museum G. Frey, 26,198–200.
Gill, B.D. (1985) A new species of Copris Muller (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) from South India. Journal of Bombay Natural History Society, 83, 632–633.
Krikken, J. (1971) The characters of Cyobius wallacei Sharp, a little-known onthophagine scarab from the Malay Archipelago (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). Entomologische Berichten (Amsterdam), 31, 22–28.
Krikken, J. (2009) Drepanocerine dung beetles: a group overview, with description of new taxa (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae). Haroldius, 4, 3–30.
Krikken, J. & Huijbregts, J. (2006) Miniature scarabs of the genus Haroldius on Sulawesi, with notes on their relatives (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). Tijdschrift voor Entomologie, 149, 167–187.
Latha, M., Cuccodoro, G., Sabu, T.K. & Vinod, K.V. (2011) Taxonomy of the dung beetle genus Ochicanthon Vaz-de-Mello (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) of the Indian subcontinent, with notes on distribution patterns and flightlessness. Zootaxa, 2745, 1–29.
Löbl, I. & Smetana, A. (2006) Catalogue of Palaearctic Coleoptera. Volume 3. Apollo, Stenstrup Denmark, 690 pp.
Myers, N. (2003) Biodiversity hotspots revisited. Bioscience, 53, 916–917.
Nair, S.C. (1991) The Southern Western Ghats - a Biodiversity Conservation Plan, Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage, New Delhi, 92 pp.
Paulian, R. (1945) Coléoptères Scarabéides de l'Indochine. Faune de l'Empire Français, 3, 1–225.
Paulian, R. (1980) Coléoptères Scarabaeidae Canthoninae d'Inde du Sud. Revue Suisse de Zoologie, 87(1), 57–66.
Paulian, R. (1983) Sur quelques coléoptères Scarabaeoidea de la region Orientale. Revue Suisse de Zoologie, 90, 615–622.
Rice, C.G. & Madhusudan, M.D. (2009) Nilgiri Tahr (Hemitragus hylocrius Ogilby, 1838). Available online http://www.wii.gov.in/envis/ungulatesofindia/nilgiri.htm. Accessed on 5 June 2009.
Rodgers, W.A. & Panwar, H.S. (1988) Planning a Wildlife Protected Areas Network in India. Department of Environment, Forests, and Wildlife/Wildlife Institute of India report. Wildlife Institute of India, Dehra Dun. Volume 1, 339 pp; Volume 2, 267 pp.
Sabu, T.K. (2011) Guild Structure, Taxonomic Diversity and Biosystematics of Dung Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeinae) in the Agriculture and Forest Habitats of South Western Ghats. Project report submitted to University Grant Commission, India.
Sabu, T.K. & Vinod, K.V. (2005) Comparative assessment of the guild structure and taxonomic diversity of two beetle (Coleoptera: Scarabaeinae) assemblages in the Wynad region of Western Ghats, pp. 47–52. In: Mary, R. (ed.). Proceedings of the National Conference Safe Environment for the Future Generations, Department of Zoology, Auxilium College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, 122 pp.
Sabu, T.K., Vinod, K.V. & Vineesh, P.J. (2006) Guild structure, diversity and succession of dung beetles associated with Indian elephant dung in South Western Ghats forests. Journal of Insect Science, 6, 17. Available online: http://insectscience.org/6.17.
Sabu, T.K., Vinod, K.V. & Vineesh, P.J. (2007) Succession of dung beetles (Scarabaeinae: Coleoptera) in the dung pats of gaur, Bos gaurus H. Smith (Artiodactyla: Bovidae), from the moist deciduous forests of southern Western Ghats. Biosystematica, 1(1), 59–69.
Sabu, T.K., Vinod, K.V., Latha, M., Nithya, S. & Boby, J. (2011) Cloud forest dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeinae) in the Western Ghats, a global biodiversity hotspot in southwestern India. Tropical Conservation Science, 4 (1), 12–24.
Scheuern, J. (1996) Neue und verkannte Onthophagus arten aus orientalischen region. Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde Serie A (Biologie), 542, 1–20.
Schoolmeesters, P. (2005) World Scarabaeidae Database (Nov 2004 version). In: Bisby, F.A., Ruggiero, M.A., Wilson, K.L., Cachuela-Palacio, M., Kimani, S.W., Roskov, Y.R., Soulier-Perkins, A. & van Hertum J. (eds.), Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2005 Annual Checklist. CD-ROM, Species 2000, Reading, U.K.
Vinod, K.V. & Sabu, T.K. (2007) Species composition and community structure of dung beetles attracted to dung of gaur and elephant in the moist forests of South Western Ghats. Journal of Insect Science, 7, 56. Available online: insectscience.org/7.56.
Vinod, K.V. (2009) Studies on the Systematics and Distribution of Dung Beetles (Scarabaeinae: Coleoptera) in the Forests and Agricultural Fields of Wayanad. Ph.D. Thesis, Forest Research Institute University, Dehradun, 214 pp.
Wikramanayake, E., Dinerstein, E., Loucks, C., Olson, D., Morrison, J., Lamoreux, J., Mcknight, M. & Hedao, P. (2002) Terrestrial Ecoregions of the Indo-Pacific: A Conservation Assessment. Island Press, Washington, 643 pp.