Poo Patrol

Jon Hawkins - Surrey Hills Photography

By Pete Dommett

Have you ever wondered what happens to all the poo that animals produce? If it wasn't cleared away, the world would soon be completely covered in muck. Yuck! Luckily, there's a plucky wildlife team that deals with the dung before it becomes a problem. It's time to call in the Poo Patrol!

Poo patrol services

Dung disposal - breaking up and removing poo by burrowing in it, burying it, breeding in it and eating it.
Waste recycling - returning nutrients (goodness) from poo to the soil, helping to keep it healthy.
Pest control - exterminating disease-carrying parasites that live on poo.
Fighting climate change - reducing greenhouse gases (like methane) that poo gives off.

The more creatures on patrol, the quicker the mess gets sorted!

Do-it-all dung beetles

A dung beetle clambering over a log — Dor beetle © Vaughn Matthews

Dung beetles do all their business in dung! There are two kinds in the UK - dwellers and tunnellers. Dwellers live in, breed in and dine on nutritious animal manure. While their grubs gobble up solid stuff, adult dwellers slurp up runny dung (anyone for a 'poothie'?).

Tunnellers dig deep burrows in the soil underneath piles of dung and drag bits of it down into nesting chambers. They lay eggs in the buried poop, which provides food for larvae.

There's a third type of dung beetles - rollers (often seen on TV nature programmes, rolling balls of dung around) - but these aren't found in the UK.

Faeces-feasting flies

A glossy green fly with red eyes feasting on a pile of poo — A fly feasting on poo © Jon Hawkins - Surrey Hills Photography

There are more than 50 different kinds of dung fly in the UK - from tiny black types to big yellow ones. Most species lay their eggs in cowpats, horse dung, sheep plop or deer droppings. The maggots that hatch out feed on the tasy waste, making it disappear more quickly.

Waste-collecting worms

An earthworm lying on soil — Earthworm © Natfot

Earthworms are also partial to a nice bit of poo. They pull dung down into the soil where it turns into a rich compost called humus. (CAUTION: that's not the stuff you dip carrot sticks in!)

Dung-loving fungi

Dung roundhead fungus, a creamy brown mushroom, growing up from some poo — Dung roundhead fungus © Chris Lawrence

Some fungi like to live on piles of poo, which also helps it to decompose. Many of these mushrooms are microscopic, but you might spot little brown toadstools on dung heaps. Mottlegills and inkcaps prefer cow or horse manure, but the dung roundhead fungus is not so fussy - this species will even grow on seabird droppings!