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Necrophilous insect dynamics at small vertebrate carrion in a temperate eucalypt woodland

- Barton, Philip, Evans, Maldwyn, Pechal, Jennifer, Benbow, M. Eric

  • Authors: Barton, Philip , Evans, Maldwyn , Pechal, Jennifer , Benbow, M. Eric
  • Date: 2017
  • Type: Text , Journal article
  • Relation: Journal of Medical Entomology Vol. 54, no. 4 (2017), p. 964-973
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  • Description: Insects associated with carrion are critical to the decomposition process and nutrient cycling in ecosystems. Yet the communities of insects associated with carrion vary between locations, and detailed case studies are necessary for identifying differences and similarities among contrasting habitats. In this study, we examined temporal changes in the crawling insect community collected from rabbit carcasses placed in contrasting grassland and tree habitats in southeastern Australia. We collected 18,400 adult insects, including 22 species of fly, 57 species of beetle, and 37 species of ant. We found significant effects of habitat type and time, but not their interaction, on the composition of the entire insect community. Several ant species showed early and rapid colonization and highest abundances during early stages of decay, including Iridomyrmex purpureus (Smith, 1858) under trees, and Iridomyrmex rufoniger (Lowne, 1865) and Rhytidoponera metallica (Smith, 1858) in grassland. We found that most fly species showed highest abundance during active decay, but Chrysomya varipes (Macquart 1851) was more abundant under trees than in grassland during this time. Beetles peaked during active or advanced decay stages, with Saprinus and Omorgus the most abundant genera. Our study demonstrates that strong replication of contrasting environmental treatments can reveal new information on habitat preferences of important carrion insect species. The numerical dominance of ants early in decomposition has implications for insect community structure via potential competitive interactions with flies, and should be more rigorously examined in future carrion studies. © The Authors 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America.

Towards quantifying carrion biomass in ecosystems

- Barton, Philip, Evans, Maldwyn, Foster, Claire, Pechal, Jennifer, Bump, Joseph

  • Authors: Barton, Philip , Evans, Maldwyn , Foster, Claire , Pechal, Jennifer , Bump, Joseph
  • Date: 2019
  • Type: Text , Journal article , Review
  • Relation: Trends in Ecology and Evolution Vol. 34, no. 10 (2019), p. 950-961
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  • Description: The decomposition of animal biomass (carrion) contributes to the recycling of energy and nutrients through ecosystems. Whereas the role of plant decomposition in ecosystems is broadly recognised, the significance of carrion to ecosystem functioning remains poorly understood. Quantitative data on carrion biomass are lacking and there is no clear pathway towards improved knowledge in this area. Here, we present a framework to show how quantities derived from individual carcasses can be scaled up using population metrics, allowing for comparisons among ecosystems and other forms of biomass. Our framework facilitates the generation of new data that is critical to building a quantitative understanding of the contribution of carrion to trophic processes and ecosystem stocks and flows. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Philip Barton” is provided in this record**
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