Abundance and diversity of Scarabaeid beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) in different farming areas in Nepal.

Abstract

The abundance and diversity of scarabaeid beetles was examined at fivedifferent farming areas in Nepal. Light traps were used to monitor the beetlesfor 12 months. A total of 4708 scarabaeid beetles of 29 genera and 77 specieswere trapped during the one year duration of this study. The five most commonscarabaeid species in the study areas were Adoretus coronatus Burmeister,Maladera thomsoni (Brenske), Anomola bilobata Arrow, Holotrichia nigricollisBrenske and Anomola dimidiata (Hope). They accounted for 58.81% of allindividuals collected. An inventory of scarabaeid beetles associated with thefive different farming areas in Nepal was developed. This data creates a basefor further studies of beetles and for the developement of conservation andmanagement strategies in Nepal