Page 6

Color us! Not all harmful; tunnelers, dwellers, rollers benefit environment

production both in the amount of money It’s important to understand and recognize spent trying to control the and also in the insects that may be in your region and how efficiency losses. Cattle getting bit by flies spend they may be affected by treatment methods less time eating and more time swishing and used for controlling pests. Having contributors twitching. They are also more stressed, which in like dung building soil organic matter Insects turn can effect daily gain. and beneficial flies aiding in Integrated Pest are not However, not all flies are pests. There is Management is great. often at the a family of flies calledTachinidae that are Take a closer look and see what aid you may forefront of parasitic of other insects in their larvae stages, be receiving; they may be small, but every bit our minds when and then pollinate as adults. The insects the helps. thinking about larvae prey upon are often plant-damaging agriculture, but they insects. Having tachinids present can reduce Abby Perry is the University of Wyoming definitely have a part, often beneficial. plant damaging pests, which can reduce the Extension educator based in Carbon County You’ve probably seen a dung or two if amount of forage damage by insects. and serving southeast Wyoming. She can be you’ve kicked very many cow patties in a pasture. The robber (family ) is another contacted at (307) 328-2642 or ajacks12@uwyo. ,There are three different kinds of dung beetles: beneficial fly. Robber flies prey other insects, edu. tunnelers, dwellers, and rollers. some of which are also plant damaging pests. So Tunnelers tunnel under the dung in the soil again, by having robber flies, insects that cause and then bring the dung into their tunnels. plant damage can be reduced and in turn there is Dwellers live within the dung pile or right less forage damage. below it. If in the business of raising livestock, or Rollers roll up the dung and then roll it away growing food for or people, this is great from the pile. news. By removing dung, both by tunneling and The golden dung fly ( stercoraria) consumption, dung beetles reduce available dung is a third beneficial . The golden dung fly is for flies, which indirectly reduces the number of a predator to horn flies and filth flies. Horn flies flies livestock producers have to control. are huge contributors to livestock production Flies can be problematic for livestock losses. Golden dung fly larvae also help recycle producers. Biting flies can cause major losses in manure and has some of the same beneficial traits of dung beetles. Color me!

Share your artwork with us! Email pictures of your coloring page to [email protected]. We’re going to add them to our Instagram page (UWYO Extension).