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• 0 Summary
• Introduction
• The study system
• Outline of this study
• Material and methods
• Results and discussion
• 1. Dung beetles form "patchy populations" within pastures
• 2. Migration rates between pastures depend on species' body size and habitat specificity
• 3. Migration rates do not decay exponentially with distance
• 4. Extensive gene flow leads to large-scale genetic homogeneity in Aphodius fossor
• 5. Species-specific traits lead to dissimilar population structures and dynamics among Aphodius species
• 6. Metapopulation structure in Aphodius pusillus
• 7. Landscape structure affects local community composition
• Open questions
• 1. Given extensive gene flow in many Aphodius species (I, II), is there potential for local adaptation?
• 2. What causes a large-scale cline in the frequency of two colour morphs of A. depressus?
• 3. What mechanisms generate the relationship between abundance and distribution in Aphodius?
• Conclusions
• Dung beetles in space
• How general are the results?
• Implications for conservation
• Acknowledgements
• References
• I Dung beetle movements at two spatial scales
• 1. Introduction
• 2. Material and methods
• 2.1 Dung beetle ecology
• 2.2 Mark, release and recapture
• 2.3 Trap-lines outside pastures
• 2.4 Hypotheses and statistical models
• 3. Results
• 3.1 Trap-line results
• 3.2 MRR results
• 4. Discussion
• 4.1 Distribution of movement distances
• 4.2 Migration rates
• Appendix A
• II Population genetic structure of the patchily distributed dung beetle Aphodius fossor
• 1. Introduction
• 2. Material and methods
• 2.1 Study system
• 2.2 Samples
• 2.3 Allozyme electrophoresis
• 2.4 Mitochondrial DNA
• 2.5 Genetic data analysis
• 2.6 Direct estimates of gene flow
• 3. Results
• 3.1 Characterization of markers
• 3.2 Phylogeographic patterns
• 3.3 Genetic population structure
• 3.4 Levels of gene flow
• 3.5 Historical population size
• 4. Discussion
• 4.1 Selection
• 4.2 Population history
• 4.3 Current population structure
• Appendix A
• III Distribution and abundance of dung beetles in fragmented landscapes
• 1. Introduction
• 2. Material and methods
• 2.1 Natural history of Aphodius
• 2.2 Study areas
• 2.3 Sampling design
• 2.4 Historical data
• 2.5 Statistical guidelines
• 3. Results
• 3.1 Species assemblages under cattle free conditions
• 3.2 Species assemblages on cattle farms
• 3.3 Comparisons over time
• 4. Discussion
• 4.1 Comparisons between generalist and specialist species
• 4.2 Comparisons among pasture specialist species
• 4.3 Farm size and connectivity
• 4.4 Landscape effects on community structure
• IV Large-scale spatial ecology of dung beetles
• 1. Introduction
• 2. Material and methods
• 2.1 Study system
• 2.2 Temporal data
• 2.3 Current ensemble composition
• 3. Results
• 3.1 Regional species richness
• 3.2 Local species richness
• 3.3 Spatial dynamics of species
• 3.4 Temporal changes in dung beetle ensembles
• 4. Discussion
• 4.1 Patterns of regional species richness
• 4.2 Effects of local processes
• 4.3 Effects of spatial processes
• 4.4 Temporal dynamics of dung beetle assemblages
• 4.5 Conclusions

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