S. Mahunka szerk.: Folia Entomologica Hungarica 56. (Budapest, 1995)

Dipterous assemblages of sheep-run droppings in Hungary (Diptera) I.: Qualitative results* L. Papp Dipterous assemblages of sheep-run droppings in Hungary (Diptera) I.: Qualitative results - Sampling and survey were completed in two Transdanubian and one Kiskunság NP areas in order to assess elements of community organisation of coleopteran and dipteran assemblages. Isochronous sheep droppings were selected and covered by isolators (as photoeclectors). The distances of isolators were measured and these data were converted into coordinate values yielding a "map of droppings". In 32 samples 11 215 ex. of 122 species were recorded. For locating droppings, the flies may be divided in two groups: a) good flier species with ability of long-distance detection of smells and b) small or minute flies, which use the pasture vegetation as take-off grounds, blown by the wind randomly to places close to droppings and which are orientated by smells from a short distance. Pan traps (30 x 4 x 4 x 0.1 m samples with more than 15 000 flies) fix the insects landed on given points of sheep-runs from the aerial plankton in surprizingly high number. Species developing very far from pastures were also captured which are obviously not members of the coprophagous or pasture assemblages. INTRODUCTION The scientific cognition of the flies colonizing on and breeding in sheep droppings is still rather scanty. Sheep is an animal species alien to all landscapes of the present Hungary (Papp 1993); it was introduced into the Carpathian Basin only some seven thousand years ago and it became mass only two or three thousand years ago. The fly populations found on and breeding in sheep droppings on pastures are recruited from the flies breeding in cattle pats, in droppings of horse and of cervid games (Rohácek 1984, Papp 1985a, 1993). Some of the earlier literature stressed production biological or veterinary importance (Olechowicz 1974, Papp 1985&). Formerly we studied interactions of flies and dung beetles in dry sheep pastures (Ádám 1986, Papp 1985a, Papp and Ádám 1986), which surrendered usable data but that pioneer work has not been accomplished. It seemed necessary to collect more data on the species composition of the flies on sheep droppings in all parts of Hungary. Indeed, some collectings had been made and whose results were published (Papp 1993). As noted by Papp (1993) the species composition of the dipterous assemblages on sheep droppings does not seem less rich than that of the flies on other dung. A comparison of the species composition of the dipterous assemblages with those on dung of other hoofers (cattle, horse, etc.) did not indicate any significant difference (Rohácek 1984, * This study was supported by the National Scientific Research Fund (OTK A) No. 3188.