Interactions between dung beetles and vertebrate dung are intimately linked to a suite of ecosystem functions in tropical forests. We show that the trapping method and the type of dung used affect the suite of beetles captured, with the potential to influence the outcome of experiments linking functions to interactions.

Dung beetle species and abundance attracted to dung baited pitfall traps and bag traps from the Atlantic Forest, Brazil. Variation in bait type and dung size used as bait recorded.