Dung Beetle Soil Health Initiative

GEORGE BORNEMISSZA AND DUNG BEETLES​

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George Bornemissza introduced industrious dung beetles into Australia from 1967 onwards to dispose of cow pads that normally remained on the ground for months, even years. Unburied dung covered valuable grazing land and was a breeding ground for flies. The beetles break up the pad and bury the rolled dung balls after laying their eggs in them. The work controlled the bush fly nuisance and helped to improve soil fertility. 

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INTRODUCING DUNG BEETLES

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"Australia’s native dung beetles which evolved with the marsupials, were not adapted to use and disperse cattle dung effectively, causing several problems. Cow dung is a major breeding ground for the buffalo fly, the native bush fly and four species of biting midges, some of which are known vectors of diseases such as ephemeral fever. Dung fouls pasture, obstructing plant growth and promoting rank unpalatable growth around the edge of dung pats. Dung also immobilises plant nutrients in undecomposed dung pats, retarding the recycling process.

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In the late 1950s George Bornemissza, suggested that foreign dung beetles could usefully be imported into Australia and led the subsequent research program at the Division of Entomology in Canberra. Between 1967 and 1982, CSIRO imported 55 species of dung beetles for release in Australia. Of these, 37 were intended for summer rainfall regions of Northern Australia. Eight species were reared in insufficient numbers, but the remaining 29 species were liberated in at least one locality in Northern Australia; of these 22 originated from southern Africa.

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It has been described as one of the greatest stories of Australian science because of its impact on sustainable agriculture. When the beetles bring dung down into tunnels, they are putting down fertiliser as well as creating holes and tunnels that help with water penetration when it rains. The disposal of dung reduces flies and breaks the parasite cycle. For every litre of dung that’s taken down, a litre of subsoil is brought to the surface. When the beetles have left after about three or four weeks, the earthworms move in and move down the tunnels, eating the dung and filling the tunnels with loosely packed earth worm casts thus replacing the need for fertiliser. It is an amazingly efficient system now being continued by land-care groups in Australia."

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(Source: CSIRO website)

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NOW

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Southern Forests Community Landcare was one of the architects of Dung Beetle Ecosystem Engineers, a southern Australia and New Zealand collaborative project that began in 2018. This project built on earlier dung beetle introduction programs from the 1960s and aimed to broaden the variety of dung beetles in southern Australia and fill seasonal and regional gaps in their activity. Increasing the species diversity and population of dung beetles will improve soil in grazing systems, increase pasture health, reduce nutrient run-off into waterways and reduce the spread of diseases and insect pests such as bush flies and parasites. Through research, breeding, and farmer engagement, the program promoted natural processes that strengthen agricultural resilience and long-term soil health.

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In the 2024 Budget the WA State Government allocated $500,000 to identify gaps in dung beetle activity in tourism locations where bush flies capitalise on unburied dung and breed populations that plague tourists. Dung Beetle Soil Health Initiative seeks to encourage the adoption of dung beetle friendly practices to reduce pest, pathogen and parasite burdens that affect livestock and the wider community. Increased dung beetle activity also contributes to improvement in soil fertility and pasture quality.

Southern Forests Community Landcare and partner, Wilson Inlet Catchment Committee, secured the tender to roll out the two-year Dung Beetle Soil Health Initiative. To achieve the broad range of monitoring, research, extension services, breeding and distribution the management team has subcontracted eight landcare groups ranging from Albany to Bullsbrook.

The project will culminate in a Report and Action Plan for the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, where data and evidence will inform recommendations for future dung beetle investment.

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