DOI: 10.5061/dryad.tqjq2bwbt
title: Data from: Effects of soil physical properties on dung beetle assemblages in pasture landscapes of the Brazilian Cerrado

description: Soil factors have important implications for the establishment of species
 that dwell on and underneath them. Dung beetles’ biological cycle is
 highly dependent on soil, and their nesting and feeding activities
 positively affect soil chemical and physical properties. We assessed the
 effect of the type of soil texture (loamy sand and sandy loam) and its
 physical properties (the amount of sand, silt, and clay), compaction, and
 soil moisture on dung beetle species assemblages (species richness,
 abundance, functional groups, and species composition) in a pastureland
 region of Brazilian Cerrado. We developed one dataset containing
 the physical soil properties (clay, silt, and sand content, soil texture
 classification, soil compaction, and soil moisture) and assemblage metrics
 of dung beetles (total richness and abundance, and abundance and richness
 of paracoprids, telecoprids, and endocoprids) sampled in 15 transects in
 introduced pastures in Aquidauana, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. We report
 that species richness was not affected by the type of soil texture and its
 properties; however, there was a consistent shift in species composition
 between loamy sand and sandy loam soils. We also found a reduction of the
 total and paracoprid beetle abundances in loamy sand soil. Furthermore,
 soil compaction was the main driver of dung beetle species composition in
 pasturelands, where the increase of soil compaction negatively affected
 the entire dung beetle assemblage and paracoprids’ abundances.
description: We carried out this study in four pastureland sites that were
 separated by &gt; 1 km among each one. In each pastureland site, four
 linear transects of 100 m were regularly distributed 100 m apart from one
 each other (except on one site, which had 3 transects, because the traps
 were removed by animals). In each transect
 (<em>i.e.</em>, replicate), we collected soil samples (~ 0.5
 kg; 0–20 cm) at the three sampling points (<em>e.g.</em>,
 sub-samples). The sub-samples were thoroughly mixed to obtain a
 representative sample to measure texture (sand, clay, and silt content),
 and soil moisture, and analysis of this sample provided average values for
 each transect. When merging the three subsets of the transects in one
 sample, we presented a replicate that joins the characteristics and
 variations observed in this space, which are independent from the nearest
 one. Soil compaction data were obtained using the impact
 penetrometer. The texture of the soils was classified
 in loamy sand and sandy loam soils according to traditional particle size
 criteria using the USDA texture triangle, a widespread and one of the
 best-known soil classification systems. According to this approach, the
 transect soils were classified into two types of soil texture; loamy sand
 (Sand: 70-86%; Silt: 0-30%; Clay: 0-15%), and sandy loam (Sand: 50-70%;
 Silt: 0-50%; Clay: 0-20%). From the total number of transects used in this
 study, eight of them comprised loamy sand soil and seven of them comprised
 sandy loam soil. We conducted dung beetle sampling
 during the rainy season (October 2010) since it exhibits the highest dung
 beetle activity and species richness in introduced Brazilian pastures. In
 each transect, we designated three sampling points, spaced 50 m apart from
 each other. At each sampling point, we set up four pitfall traps, spaced
 10 m apart from each other in a square baited with approximately 40 g of
 carrion, cattle dung, human feces, and fresh grain pig dung. Traps
 consisting of plastic containers (15 cm in diameter, 9 cm in depth)
 installed at ground level. We partially filled each container with 250 ml
 of saline solution + neutral detergent (1.5%). We placed a plastic lid (15
 cm in diameter) supported by three wooden sticks (25 cm) above each trap,
 suspending them 20 cm above the ground to reduce bait desiccation and
 prevent potential rain damage. We positioned the baits in 50 ml plastic
 containers at the center of each trap using a wire as a bait holder. Traps
 remained active for 48 hours at each transect, a time period that is
 widely used in ecological studies of dung beetle assemblages in tropical
 landscapes of America. Throughout the study, we deployed a total of 180
 traps (12 traps per transect × 15 transects).
description: # Data from: Effects of soil physical properties on dung beetle
 assemblages in pasture landscapes of the Brazilian Cerrado Dataset DOI:
 [10.5061/dryad.tqjq2bwbt](10.5061/dryad.tqjq2bwbt) ## Description of the
 data and file structure We assessed the effect of the type of soil texture
 (loamy sand and sandy loam) and its physical properties (the amount of
 sand, silt, and clay), compaction, and soil moisture on dung beetle
 species assemblages (species richness, abundance, functional groups, and
 species composition) in a pastureland region of Brazilian Cerrado. For
 this, we collected soil and dung beetles and measured soil physical
 properties in 15 transects within 4 pasture sites in the Brazilian Cerrado
 ### Files and variables #### File: Data_Soil_and_Dung_beetles.xlsx
 **Description:** Soil and dung beetles in the Brazilian Cerrado #####
 Variables **Assemblage variables** * **Richness_total:** number of species
 in the assemblage * **Abundance_total**: total number of individuals in
 the assemblage * **Richness_paracoprid:** number of species that dig
 tunnels beneath the dung * **Abundance_paracoprid:** number of individuals
 that dig tunnels beneath the dung * **Richness_telecoprid**: number of
 species that roll food balls * **Abundance_telecoprid**: number of
 individuals that food balls * **Richness_endocoprid**: number of species
 that feed and breed inside the dung mass *
 **Abundance_endocoprid:** number of individuals that feed and breed inside
 the dung mass **Soil variables** * **transect:** location where dung
 beetle and soil variables were sampled * **pasture**: type of land use or
 sampling area * **sand:** proportion of sand content in the soil (%) *
 **silt:** proportion of silt content in the soil (%) *
 **clay:** proportion of clay content in the soil (%) * **soil_type**: soil
 texture classification * **compact_mean:** mean value of soil hardness
 (MPa) * **moisture_mean:** average proportion of water in the soil (%)