Collection of Coleoptera from a poultry farm in Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Abstract

To evaluate the population fluctuation of Coleoptera from a poultry farm in Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, two sampling methods were used: a tube-type trap and a sandwich trap. The analyses of polynomial regression were applied independent of the type of sampling method used. The experiment was carried out for twelve months, from April 2002 to March 2003, in a broiler barn aviary at the Conjunto Agrotécnico Visconde da Graça/UFPEL. A total of 43.945 Coleopterans were captured from the following species: Alphitobius diaperinus, Carcinops troglodytes, Euspilotus rubriculus, Gnathocerus cornutus, Mezium americanum and Somotrichus unifasciatus. Among these, Alphitobius diaperinus was present in all months of the year, with larval population peak in February (235) and lowest capture in August (01). The adult population peak was in March (12,020) and the lowest capture in July (27). The remaining captured Coleopterans did not occur in all twelve months, however they also had population peaks in the months of February and March, which also were the months with the highest temperatures.