1. Factors influencing abundance of the American burying beetle at different geographic scales Curtis Creighton Purdue University Calumet

2. Co-presenters Robert Basarache - Ouachita National Forest, United States Forest Service, Idabel, OK 74745 Mark V. Lomolino -SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY 13210 Mark Belk - Department of Integrative Biology Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah 846024 Gary D. Schnell - Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History and Department of Zoology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73072 Ana E. Hiott - Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73072

3. Historical and Current Distributions

4. Hypotheses explaining the decline of the American burying beetle 1.Habitat loss and fragmentation (Anderson 1982) artificial lighting vertebrate competition loss of carrion congener competition 2.Extinction of the passenger pigeon 3.Pathogen

5. Body Size Implications

6. Larger species tend to depend on larger prey Larger species tend to occupy a greater diversity of habitats Larger species tend to require larger home ranges

7. Body Size Implications Larger species tend to occupy a greater diversity of habitats

8. Body Size Implications Larger species tend to occupy a greater diversity of habitats

9. Body Size Implications Larger species tend to require larger home ranges

10. Factors affecting abundance at local scales: Tiak District of Ouachita National Forest

11. Factors affecting local abundance

12. Tree density: 2.3 – 4.6 m 2 / ha

13. Factors affecting local abundance Tree density: 10.3 – 15.0 m 2 / ha

14. Factors affecting local abundance 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 19931994199519961998 Year Beetles/Trap-night Plot 2 Plot 3 Plot 1

15. Factors affecting local abundance 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 Seed-CutSelect 1Select 2 Site Beetles/Trap*night Before After Randomization test p = 0.045

16. Factors affecting abundance at local scales: Fort Chaffee

17. Factors affecting local abundance

20. r = -0.527 p < 0.01

21. Factors affecting local abundance Distance (km) from border r = 0.521 p < 0.01

22. Factors affecting local abundance

24. Factors affecting abundance at regional scales: Eastern Oklahoma

25. 0 5000 10000 15000 20000 25000 00.511.522.5 Beetle density - N. orbicollis Area size (ha) r = -0.04 Factors affecting regional abundance

26. 0 5000 10000 15000 20000 25000 00.050.10.150.20.250.30.350.40.450.5 Beetle density -N. americanus Area size (ha) r = 0.94

27. Hypotheses explaining the decline of the American burying beetle 1.Habitat loss and fragmentation (Anderson 1982) artificial lighting vertebrate competition loss of carrion congener competition 2.Extinction of the passenger pigeon 3.Pathogen

28. Funding provided by: United States Forest Service Military Department of Arkansas United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Management