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Effects of dung beetles on seedling emergence from herbaceous seeds in the dung of sika deer (Cervus nippon) in a temperate Japanese grassland ecosystem

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Ecological Research

Abstract

The effects of dung form and condition and of dung beetles on the emergence of seedlings from herbaceous seeds in sika deer dung were examined in a temperate grassland ecosystem dominated by Zoysia japonica and Hydrocotyle maritima. I conducted field experiments to compare seedling emergence between dung exposed to dung beetles and intact dung using both dung pellets and pats during a typical rainy month (June) and the hottest, drier month (August), when large numbers of seeds of the dominant species were present in the dung. The exposed dung was immediately attacked and broken up by dung beetles, whereas dung protected from the beetles remained intact. In June, at least 12 herbaceous species, including Z. japonica, H. maritima, Mazus pumilus, and Plantago asiatica, emerged from the dung, versus at least six species in August. Decomposition rates of the pellets in June and decomposition scores of the pats in June and August were positively correlated with the number of emerging seedlings, suggesting that the acceleration of decomposition by dung beetles can positively affect seed germination. In this system of interactions among sika deer, herbaceous plants, and dung beetles, sika deer dung prevented seeds from germinating, and beetles had an indirect positive effect on seedling emergence by accelerating decomposition of the dung, although the extent of the effect may depend on the dung type, plant species, and environmental factors.

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Acknowledgments

I thank Dr. H. Sato of Nara Women’s University for identifying the dung beetles and helpful suggestions. I thank Dr. N. Hijii of Nagoya University for his critical reading of this manuscript, and Dr. T. Yoshida of Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology for support in the field and his helpful suggestions. I thank the Kasuga Shrine for their permission to collect soil and stones in the Tobihino area, and the Foundation for the Protection of Deer in Nara Park to use the Antler Cutting Site, Rokuen in Nara Park. I also thank the members of the Laboratory of Forest Protection, Nagoya University, for their valuable suggestions and support.

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  1. Laboratory of Forest Protection, Graduate School of Bioagricultural Sciences, Nagoya University, Chikusa, Nagoya, 464-8601, Japan

    Haruna Ishikawa

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  1. Haruna Ishikawa
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Correspondence to Haruna Ishikawa.

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Ishikawa, H. Effects of dung beetles on seedling emergence from herbaceous seeds in the dung of sika deer (Cervus nippon) in a temperate Japanese grassland ecosystem. Ecol Res 26, 725–734 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11284-011-0831-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11284-011-0831-6

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