Abstract
Egg to pupal survival of bush fly,Musca vetustissima Walker, under field conditions was examined during 1987/88 in an area of south-eastern Australia that had not been colonised by exotic dung beetles. In pads of cattle dung containing only the native fauna, fly survival ranged from 0.3% to 12.5%. The addition of 2 species of exotic dung beetles,Euoniticellus fulvus (Goeze) andOnthophagus taurus (Schreber) to field pads, in numbers similar to those observed at the collection site, reduced fly survival to between 0.3% and 4.4%. Fly survival in the presence of the native and exotic dung fauna was sufficiently low to keep fly breeding below their mean replacement level of 3% for most of the season. Widespread dispersal and establishment of exotic dung beetles in south-eastern Australia, alongside the native fauna, should lead to long-term reduction of the bush fly problem.
Résumé
La survie de l'œuf à la pupe de la mouche de la brousseMusca vetustissima Wlk., en conditions naturelles, a été examinée au cours des années 1987/1988 dans une région du sud est de l'Australie qui n'avait pas été colonisée par les bousiers exotiques. Dans les amas de bouses de détail contenant uniquement la faune autochtone, la survie de la mouche variait de 0,3 à 12,5%. L'addition de deux espèces de bousiers exotiqueEuoniticellus fulvus (Goeze) etOnthophagus taurus (Schreber) aux amas disposés dans les champs, en nombres comparables à ceux observés dans les sites de récolte, réduisait la survie des mouches entre 0,3 et 4,4%. La survie des mouches en présence de la faune indigène et exotique des bouses était suffisamment basse pour maintenir la multiplication des mouches au-dessous de leur niveau moyen de remplacement de 3% pour toute la saison. La dispersion étendue et l'établissement de bousiers exotiques dans le sud-est de l'Australie, à côté de la faune indigène, conduiront à la réduction à long terme du problème de la mouche de la brousse.
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Tyndale-Biscoe, M., Vogt, W.G. Effects of adding exotic dung beetles to native fauna on bush fly breeding in the field. Entomophaga 36, 395–401 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02377944
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02377944