Dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea) are of great importance to nutrient cycling, ecosystem functioning, seed dispersal and nature conservation. Most of the dung beetles are large, easy to detect and determinate. In Belgium, coprophilous beetles can appear in different families but mainly in Scarabaeidae, Geotrupidae, Aegialiidae, Aphodiidae and Bolboceratidae. Recent data about their distribution in Belgium, however, has not been compiled recently. To gain more insight in their distribution, an internship was set up to bring the Belgian distribution data together.

In this project, we want to collect information from literature, collections and data bases to obtain the distribution and trend of dung beetles (currently limited to Scarabaeidae, Geotrupidae and Bolboceratidae) in Belgium. The goal is to present the results in an atlas (similar to Thomaes et al. 2015. Rode lijst van de saproxyle bladsprietkevers (Lucanidae, Cetoniidae en Dynastidae) in Vlaanderen).
Therefore, we ask fellow entomologist to send us Belgian records of these dung beetles or to contact us so we can have a look in your collection or database. In order to be able to put the data in the (provisionary) atlas made by the internship student, we should need the data before the end of April.  Afterwards we hope to finalize this internship project in a final atlas so data send in later will still be used.

We hope we can rely on your cooperation. Please send your records to:

Arno Thomaes, Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO), Havenlaan 88 bus 73, 1000 Brussels, Belgium, email: arno.thomaes@inbo.be

Wouter Dekoninck, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural sciences (RBINS), Vautierstraat 29, 1000 Brussels, Belgium, email: wdekoninck@naturalsciences.be