Succession in local dung beetle assemblages influences their delivery of ecological functions in natural and modified environments globally. Short-term changes in dung beetle (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) species richness, abundance, and biomass were investigated in standardized dung pads in northern, coastal Turkey. For mean tunneling guild abundance, dung deposition time, dung exposure period, and their interaction were significant, and for mean dung dwelling guild abundance, dung exposure period was significant, as was the interaction with dung deposition time, which collectively evidenced temporal resource partitioning, based principally on differences in diel activity. Succession was highly compressed, with maximum abundance at 12 h and maximum species richness at 24 h. A large ball roller and small- to medium-sized tunnelers dominated different periods in the first 24 h but were superseded by dwellers. Regression analysis demonstrated a significant, positive relationship between species richness and the evenness of abundance for both dung deposition times. Correlation analysis generally showed strong, positive correlations between tunneling species, low correlations between tunneling and dwelling species, and low correlations between dwelling species. Niche partitioning based on size difference appears to have acted on the environmental filtering of tunneling species along the temporal gradient of declining moisture, thereby limiting the number of abundant, concurrent species. The aggregation of tunneling species provided opportunities for the less competitive dwelling species to occupy less densely populated zones termed probability refuges. The network of strong, positive habitat' correlations between tunneling species may indicate that their collective functionality is vulnerable to loss of efficiency if species are lost.

Coextinction is a major and growing threat to global biodiversity. One of the affected groups is the eriophyoid mites (Prostigmata: Eriophyoidea) which are highly host plant specific. They have been described from an enormous range of annual and perennial plants from grasses to giant forest trees. It is highly likely that there are huge numbers of undescribed eriophyoid species in the subtropical and tropical regions which harbor an extraordinary wealth of plant diversity. The global total of eriophyoid species is estimated to be at least 250,000 but it could be much higher. However, the continuing destruction and degradation of natural habitat, especially tropical forests, and climate change, together pose extreme, on-going threats to the eriophyoid mites because of their vulnerability to co-extinction with their host plants. It has been reported that one third of all the Earth’s plant species are now at risk of extinction. Together with enormous numbers of other invertebrate species, it is highly likely that many thousands of eriophyoid species are disappearing in the current mass extinction event. Population decline and co-extinction, especially of the invertebrates, are greatly accelerating total biodiversity losses. The termination of habitat destruction and degradation; establishment of large, representative protected areas; restoration of degraded areas; and rapid reduction of fossil fuel use, are urgent tasks. However, the long term conservation of biodiversity can only be achieved through comprehensive social, economic and political reforms across the world that prioritize environmental protection, peaceful coexistence, social justice and the sustainable use of resources.

Aim: The global distribution and diversity of mites, including the species rich and highly host plant‐specific eriophyoid mites, are important questions in biogeography and biodiversity conservation. Here we critique the paper of Li et al. (2023) titled ‘Global patterns and drivers of herbivorous eriophyoid mite species diversity’.Location: GlobalTaxon: Eriophyoid mites (Acari: Eriophyoidea)Methods: We assert that the data set utilized (less than 4,500 eriophyoid species) consisted of only the described extant species, not all extant species. We then provide evidence that the utilised data set represents only a small proportion of the likely global total of eriophyoid species and therefore provides a far from complete representation of their global distribution.Results: Most collections of extant eriophyoid mites have been conducted in temperate regions where most taxonomic specialists have been active, and not in the largely unstudied tropical regions which contain a very substantial majority of all plant diversity. Most undescribed eriophyoid diversity is therefore highly likely to be found in the tropics. This suggests that the global modelling analyses of Li et al. (2023) were very likely applied to a highly inaccurate data set.Main Conclusions: The actual global distribution and total number of eriophyoid mite species can only be more reliably estimated by systematic taxonomic studies that cover the entire global distribution of plant diversity, which implies a strong focus on the tropical regions.

Guilds of dung dwelling and tunneling dung beetles coexist in local assemblages in warm temperate regions, despite the tendency of dwellers to be inferior competitors. A field experiment on the Black Sea coast of Turkey examined the role of temporal resource partitioning in their coexistence. Standardized dung pads deposited at 4 h intervals through a 24 h period in summer were collected 12, 24, or 48 h later. Adults from 10 tunneling and seven dung dwelling species were collected. The tunnelers contributed a high proportion of both total abundance and biomass. There was a significant effect of dung deposition time and exposure period on mean tunneler abundance. Mean tunneler abundance was nearly seven times higher in dung deposited at 06:00 than at 18:00. The dwellers reduced the potential for competitive interactions with tunnelers by relatively uniform dispersal across the six dung deposition times. The distinctly different dung use patterns by dwellers and tunnelers demonstrated temporal resource partitioning. Interspecific correlation coefficients were also determined because interspecific relationships are at the core of resource partitioning. Total tunneler and dweller abundances were not correlated. Overall, there were strong positive correlations between tunneling species and low correlations between tunneling and dwelling species, and between dwelling species. The five most abundant tunnelers, from two tribes and three genera, were strongly positively correlated. There were substantial size differences among the four most abundant tunnelers that probably facilitate their coexistence.