Extralimital Dynastinae (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) in Australia

Abstract

The identification, origin, introduction, establishment, spread and pest status of extralimital (introduced, those that naturally occur within and outside Australia, and possibly introduced but of uncertain origin) dynastines in Australia and its territories are reviewed. We examine likely introduction pathways and the species’ life histories and attempt to draw out factors that predispose some species to establish, naturalise and then become invasive. Six categories of extralimital dynastines are identified: established and have spread widely (invasive)—Cyclocephala signaticollis Burmeister, 1847, Heteronychus arator (Fabricius, 1775); established but have not spread widely (sleepers)—Oryctes rhinoceros (Linnaeus, 1758), Oryctoderus latitarsus Boisduval, 1835 (possibly), Papuana woodlarkiana (Montrouzier, 1855) (possibly), Temnorhynchus retusus (Fabricius, 1781); known from one or only a few specimens that have arrived but not established—H. parumpunctatus Burmeister, 1847, Or. centaurus Sternberg, 1910, Pa. angusta Arrow, 1914, Pentodon algerinus algerinus (Fuessly, 1778); with distributions that extend from New Guinea into northeastern Australia—Pa. woodlarkiana (possibly), Od. latitarsus (possibly), Xylotrupes carinulus Rowland, 2011; whose records within Australia are doubtful—Dipelicus integriceps (Fairmaire, 1877), D. montrouzieri (Reiche, 1860), Or. nasicornis (Linnaeus, 1758), Pa. tibialis Arrow, 1941, Phyllognathus degener Fairmaire, 1891; species whose identity is unclear—Carne’s (1981) enigmatic species. Characters that make a species an ideal tramp species are: adults feed and are active for an extended period after emergence; larval development is relatively quick; adults and larvae are associated with potted plants and lawn grasses; the native distribution is in the Southern Hemisphere so that life cycles are synchronised between original and introduced localities. Shipping ballast and potted plants were the probable major pathways of introduction, but now rapid air and land transport provide the means for movement into and within Australia of hitchhiker species. Key words: Dynastinae, introductions, exotic species, pest species, quarantine, biosecurity