Boreocanthon praticola
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Boreocanthon praticola | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Suborder: | Polyphaga |
| Infraorder: | Scarabaeiformia |
| Family: | Scarabaeidae |
| Genus: | Boreocanthon |
| Species: | B. praticola |
| Binomial name | |
| Boreocanthon praticola | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Boreocanthon praticola is a species of dung beetle in the family Scarabaeidae. It occurs in the great plains from southern Canada to Texas as well as in the American southwest and northwestern Mexico. [1]
Boreocanthon praticola has a strong preference for prairie dog dung and its range roughly corresponds to the combined ranges of the black-tailed prairie dog and Gunnison's prairie dog.[1] It can be commonly found feeding on prairie dog pellets buried within prairie dog mounds. It is known to roll prairie dog pellets without forming them into a ball.[2] It will also utilize the dung of cattle, bison, pigs, humans, and rabbits.[1]
While the species does not occur in California today, it has been identified in the La Brea tar pits.[1]
