Modelling Distribution of Onthophagus Species (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) in Sarawak
Modelling distribution of Onthophagus species in Sarawak
Abstract
Dung beetles (Genus: Onthophagus) are members of the family Scarabaeidae and the subfamily Scarabaeinae. Despite their small size and unattractive appearance, dung beetles play an important role in the ecosystem, and they are widely recognised as one of the most effective bioindicators of ecosystem health. Although there has been an increase in dung beetle studies in Peninsular Malaysia, there are very few ecological studies of dung beetles conducted in Sarawak, despite being the largest state of Malaysia. Therefore, this study aims to provide recent information on the distributions of dung beetles from the genus Onthophagus in Sarawak. A total of 32 occurrences data for eight selected Onthophagus species representing 11 localities were successfully recorded. All analyses were performed using the Maximum Entropy Modelling Version 3.4.4 (MaxEnt) and Quantum Geographic Information Systems 3.28.2 (QGIS) software. It is revealed that most dung beetles’ distributions are strongly influenced by temperature and precipitation which suggests its capabilities as a bioindicator to identify high biodiversity areas. In conclusion, this study could be beneficial to identify the potential hotspot areas for biodiversity conservation and effective management practices in Sarawak.
References
Bosuang, S., Chung, A.Y.C. & Chan, C.L. (2017). A Guide to The Beetles of Borneo. Kota Kinabalu, Sabah: Natural History Publications (Borneo).
Davis, A.J., Holloway, J.D., Huijbregts, H., Krikken, J., Kirk-Spriggs, A.H. & Sutton, S.L. (2001). Dung beetles as indicators of change in the forests of northern Borneo. Journal of Applied Ecology, 38(3): 593-616. DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2664.2001.00619.x
Djamel, B., Abdelkader, R., Abdelghani, B. & Lotfi, M. (2021). Evaluating insects as bioindicators of the wetland environment quality (arid region of Algeria). In Carmona, E.C., Ortiz, A.C., Canas, R.Q. & Musarella, C.M. (eds.). Vegetation Index and Dynamics. IntechOpen. DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.97700
Elith, J., Graham, C. H., Anderson, R. P., Dudík, M., Ferrier, S., Guisan, A., Hijmans, R. J., Huettmann, F., Leathwick, J.R., Lehmann, A., Li, J., Lohmann, L.G., Loiselle, B.A., Manion, G., Moritz, C., Nakamura, M., Nakazawa, Y., Overton, J.M.M., Peterson, A. T., Phillips, S.J., Richardson, K.S., Scachetti-Pereira, R., Schapire, R.E., Sobero ́, J., Williams, S., Wisz, M.S. & Zimmermann, N. E. (2006). Novel methods improve prediction of species’ distributions from occurrence data. Ecography, 29(2): 129-151. DOI: 10.1111/j.2006.0906-7590.04596.x
Elith, J., Phillips, S.J., Hastie, T., Dudík, M., Chee, Y.E. & Yates, C.J. (2010). A statistical explanation of MaxEnt for ecologists. Diversity and Distributions, 17(1): 43-57. DOI: 10.1111/j.1472-4642.2010.00725.x
Estupiñan-Mojica, A., Portela-Salomão, R., Liberal, C.N., Santos, B.A., Machado, C.C.C., de Araujo, H.F. P., Von Thaden, J. & Alvarado, F. (2022). Landscape attributes shape dung beetle diversity at multiple spatial scales in agricultural drylands. Basic and Applied Ecology, 63: 139-151.
Forest Department Sarawak (2020). Types and Categories of Sarawak’s Forests. Retrieved January 19, 2023, https://forestry.sarawak.gov .my/page-0-160-593-Types-and-Categories-of-Sarawak-s-Forests.html
Gaur, A., Bhutia, T.K., Lotha, G., Promeet, D., Rodriguez, E., Rogers, K., Singh, S. & Sinha, S. (2020). Dung beetle insect. Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved January 19, 2023, from https://www.britannica.com/animal/dung-beetle
Gaur, A., Bhutia, T.K., Lotha, G., Promeet, D., Rodriguez, E., Rogers, K., Singh, S. & Sinha, S. (2021). Coleopteran definition, characteristics, examples, classification, & facts. Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved January 19, 2023, from https://www.britannica.com/animal/beetle
Goh, T.G. & Hashim, R. (2019). Conservation of dung beetles (Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) in Peninsular Malaysia. Journal of Wildlife and Parks, 34: 81-93.
Hanski, I. (1983). Distributional ecology and abundance of dung and carrion-feeding beetles (Scarabaeidae) in tropical rain forests in Sarawak, Borneo. Finnish Zoological Publishing Board.
Hazebroek, H.P. & Abang Kashim, A.M. (2000). National Parks of Sarawak. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. pp. 502.
Hernandez, P.A., Graham, C.H., Master, L.L. & Albert D.L. (2006). The effect of sample size and species characteristics on performance of different species distribution modeling methods. Ecography, 29: 773-785.
Howden, H.F. & Cartwright, O.L. (1963). Scarab Beetles of the Genus Onthophagus Latreille North of Mexico (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). Proceedings of the United States National Museum, 114(3467): 1-135. DOI: 10.5479/si.00963801.114-3467.1
Kadmon, R., Farber, O. & Danin, A. (2003). A systematic analysis of factors affecting the performance of climatic envelope models. Ecological Applications, 13(3): 853-867. DOI: 10.2307/4134701
Kakkar, N. & Gupta, S.K. (2010). Diversity and seasonal fluctuations in dung beetle (Coleoptera) community in Kurukshetra, India. Entomological Research, 40(3): 189-192. DOI: 10.1111/j.1748-5967.2010.00275.x
Kishimoto-Yamada, K., Hyodo, F., Matsuoka, M., Hashimoto, Y., Kon, M., Ochi, T., Yamane, S., Ishii, R. & Itioka, T. (2013). Effects of remnant primary forests on ant and dung beetle species diversity in a secondary forest in Sarawak, Malaysia. Journal of Insect Conservation, 17(3): 591-605. DOI: 10.1007/s10841-012-9544-6
Krikken, J. & Huijbregts, J. (2008). Distinguishing the Sundaland species in the Onthophagus (Parascatonomus) aurifex group (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae). Tijdschrift Voor Entomologie, 151(2): 173-185. DOI: 10.1163 /22119434-900000262
Krinsky, W.L. (2002). Beetles (Coleoptera). Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 6: 87-101. DOI: 10.1016/b978-012510451-7/50008-6
Nichols, E., Spector, S., Louzada, J., Larsen, T., Amezquita, S. & Favila, M.E. (2008). Ecological functions and ecosystem services provided by Scarabaeinae dung beetles. Biological Conservation, 141(6): 1461-1474.
Nur Azizuhamizah, I., Othman, N.L. & Abang, F. (2020). Distribution modelling of the Lamproptera species (Papilioidae: Leptocircini) in Borneo. Serangga, 25(2): 43-55.
Phillips, S.J., Anderson, R.P. & Schapire, R.E. (2006). Maximum entropy modelling of species geographic distributions. Ecological Modelling, 190: 231-259.
Sakai, S. & Inoue, T. (1999). A new pollination system: Dung‐beetle pollination discovered in Orchidantha inouei (Lowiaceae, Zingiberales) in Sarawak, Malaysia. American Journal of Botany, 86(1): 56-61. DOI: 10.2307/2656954
Saleh, S., Hasanah, U. & Elijonnahdi, E. (2014). Effectiveness of dung beetles as bioindicators of environmental changes in land-use gradient in Sulawesi, Indonesia. BIOTROPIA - The Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Biology, 21(1). DOI: 10.11598/btb.2014.21.1.309
Triplehorn, C.A. & Johnson, N.F. (2005). Borror and DeLong’s Introduction to the study of Insects. Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning. United States of America.
Verdú, J.R. & Ruiz, J. (2015). Thorectes valencianus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Widhiono, I., Pandhani, R.D., Darsono, D., Riwidiharso, E., Santoso, S. & Prayoga, L. (2017). Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) diversity as bioindicator of agroecosystem health in northern slope of Mount Slamet, Central Java, Indonesia. Biodiversitas Journal of Biological Diversity, 18(4): 1475-1480. DOI: 10.1111/icad.12470
Copyright (c) 2023 Borneo Journal of Resource Science and Technology
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Copyright Transfer Statement for Journal
1) In signing this statement, the author(s) grant UNIMAS Publisher an exclusive license to publish their original research papers. The author(s) also grant UNIMAS Publisher permission to reproduce, recreate, translate, extract or summarize, and to distribute and display in any forms, formats, and media. The author(s) can reuse their papers in their future printed work without first requiring permission from UNIMAS Publisher, provided that the author(s) acknowledge and reference publication in the Journal.
2) For open access articles, the author(s) agree that their articles published under UNIMAS Publisher are distributed under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-SA (Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, for non-commercial purposes, provided the original work of the author(s) is properly cited.
3) For subscription articles, the author(s) agree that UNIMAS Publisher holds copyright, or an exclusive license to publish. Readers or users may view, download, print, and copy the content, for academic purposes, subject to the following conditions of use: (a) any reuse of materials is subject to permission from UNIMAS Publisher; (b) archived materials may only be used for academic research; (c) archived materials may not be used for commercial purposes, which include but not limited to monetary compensation by means of sale, resale, license, transfer of copyright, loan, etc.; and (d) archived materials may not be re-published in any part, either in print or online.
4) The author(s) is/are responsible to ensure his or her or their submitted work is original and does not infringe any existing copyright, trademark, patent, statutory right, or propriety right of others. Corresponding author(s) has (have) obtained permission from all co-authors prior to submission to the journal. Upon submission of the manuscript, the author(s) agree that no similar work has been or will be submitted or published elsewhere in any language. If submitted manuscript includes materials from others, the authors have obtained the permission from the copyright owners.
5) In signing this statement, the author(s) declare(s) that the researches in which they have conducted are in compliance with the current laws of the respective country and UNIMAS Journal Publication Ethics Policy. Any experimentation or research involving human or the use of animal samples must obtain approval from Human or Animal Ethics Committee in their respective institutions. The author(s) agree and understand that UNIMAS Publisher is not responsible for any compensational claims or failure caused by the author(s) in fulfilling the above-mentioned requirements. The author(s) must accept the responsibility for releasing their materials upon request by Chief Editor or UNIMAS Publisher.
6) The author(s) should have participated sufficiently in the work and ensured the appropriateness of the content of the article. The author(s) should also agree that he or she has no commercial attachments (e.g. patent or license arrangement, equity interest, consultancies, etc.) that might pose any conflict of interest with the submitted manuscript. The author(s) also agree to make any relevant materials and data available upon request by the editor or UNIMAS Publisher.
