Dungbusters
The Dungbusters education module comprises:
- background information for teachers and students
- supporting information and references
- activities
- resource sheets and background notes.
It introduces students to the important functions that dung beetles perform by rapidly returning animal manure to the soil, including recycling nutrients, promoting pasture growth, improving the quality of run-off from pastures and reducing fly breeding habitat.
The Dungbusters Education Module has been provided split in sections to enable faster download and as a complete PDF to facilitate printing.
Dungbusters Education Module in sections
- Part 1 (PDF, 256K)*
- Copyright
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Using this module
- Rationale
- Main Ideas
- Part 2 (PDF, 110K)*
- Natural Resource Management Education Program Framework
- Curriculum links
- Part 3 (PDF, 250K)*
- Background information for teachers and students
- What is a dung beetle?
- Environmental benefits of dung beetles
- Dung beetles in Australia
- Part 4 (PDF, 147K)*
- Flight
- Feeding
- Breeding
- Tunnellers
- Ball-rollers
- Seasonal activity
- Factors that affect dung beetle populations
- Managing to optimise beetle populations
- Dung beetles as competitors
- Dung beetles and nutrients
- Part 5 (PDF, 251K)*
- Identifying the eight common introduced dung beetle species in Queensland
- Males and females
- Tunnelling species
- Part 6 (PDF, 171K)*
- Ball-rolling species
- Other support information and references
- Suggested activities
- Why are farms important?
- Where did all the dung beetles come from?
- Part 7 (PDF, 300K)*
- Effects of dung beetle activity on the environment
- Sampling dung beetles in your local area
- Identification of common introduced dung beetles
- Making a dung beetle farm
- Part 8 (PDF, 230K)*
- Getting to know your dung beetles
- Dung beetles and plant growth
- Part 9 (PDF, 223K)*
- Photosequence of dung dispersal
- Part 10 (PDF, 175K)*
- Debate: 'Introduced dung beetles are good for Queensland's environment'
- Local area study
- Where to from here?
- Part 11 (PDF, 195K)*
- Resource sheets
- 1…Dung beetles arrive in Australia!
- 2…Operation 'Dung Beetle'
- Part 12 (PDF, 244K)*
- 3…Queensland distribution of common introduced dung beetles
- Part 13 (PDF, 120K)*
- 4…Dung beetle data collection sheet
- 5…Common dung beetles in Queensland: colour identification sheet
- Part 14 (PDF, 356K)*
- 6…Agent Doug the dung beetle and his dungbusters!
- 7…Dung beetles and nutrient cycling
- Part 15 (PDF, 194K)*
- 8…Conducting a debate
- 9…Developing a project plan
- 10…Property planning
Complete Module
- Dungbusters Education Module (PDF, 2.2M)*
If you experience difficulty downloading any of these documents please email the Department.
* Requires Adobe Reader
Last updated 5 August 2010
