69 National Journal of Life Sciences, Vol. 8(1) 2011 : 65-68 * Author for correspondence (email : kailash611@rediffmail.com) Received 03.02.2011 Accepted 18.05.2011 ISSN : 0972-995X ADDI TI ONAL RECORDS OF SCARAB FAUNA (COLEOPTERA : SCARABAEI DAE) OF PACHMARHI BI OSPHERE RESERVE, MADHYA PRADESH, I NDI A KAI LASH CHANDRA 1* , SALMA KHAN 2 , DEVANSHU GUPTA 3 and SHI VESH PRATAP SI NGH 4 1 Zoological Survey of India, New Alipore, Kolkata (W.B) 2 Department of Bioscience, R.D.V.V., Jabalpur (M.P.) 3 Zoological Survey of I ndia, Jabalpur (M.P.) 4 Department of Zoology, Govt. P.G. College, Satna (M.P.) ABSTRACT : The paper presents twelve additional records of Scarab beetles viz., Sisyphus hirtus Wiedmann, S.neglects Gory, Copris repertus Walker, C.surdus Arrow, Caccobius ultor (Sharp). Onthophagus abreui Arrow, O.dama (Fabricius), O.griseosetosus Arrow, O.hindu Arrow, O.quadridentatus (Fabricius), Onitis subopacus Arrow and Anom- ala rugosa Arrow belonging to 6 genera and 2 subfamilies from Pachmarhi Biosphere reserve (PBR), M.P. A checklist of Scarabs of PBR representing 64 species belonging to 30 genera and 7 subfamilies is also provided. Key words : Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve (PBR), Additional records, Coleoptera and Scarabaeidae. dra (2009). Chandra and Gupta (2002) reported three species of Scarabaeidae from PBR constituting new records to the fauna of PBR. Subsequently Chandra and Singh (2004) stud- ied 18 species of Scarabaeid beetles belonging to 11 genera from PBR. Recently an account of Coleopteran diversity of PBR was published by Chandra (2009) whereas 95 species pertaining to 56 genera and 12 families were reported of which 52 species belonging to 28 genera and 7 subfamilies were in- cluded from the family Scarabaeidae. While working on unidentified collection of PBR, 12 species belonging to 6 genera and 2 subfamilies are identified. All the species are recorded for the first time from the bio- sphere reserve. The details of references, material examined and distribution records of all the species studied are provid- ed. The paper also presents a checklist of Scarabs of PBR representing 64 species belonging to 30 genera and 7 subfam- ilies (Table.1). MATERIAL AND METHODS The Pachmarhi Biosphere reserve lies in the Satpura hill ranges of Madhya Pradesh between latitudes 20°10' N to 22°50' N and longitudes 77°45' E to 78°50' E and is located in three civil districts of Hoshangabad, Betul and Chhindwara. The total area of the Biosphere Reserve is 4926.20 sq km en- veloping three wildlife conservation units, viz., the Bori sanc- tuary (518.00 sq. km.), the Satpura National Park (524.37 sq km) and the Pachmarhi Sanctuary (461.85 sq km). The altitude ranges from 320 to 1352 m above msl at different locations. The general configuration of the area is hilly with undulating terrain. The Biosphere area has a typical monsoon climate which varied due to variations in elevation and topography at different places. Depending on season, INTRODUCTION Scarab beetles are the most diverse and widely distrib- uted groups of beetle, which belong to the family Scarabaeidae of largest order Coleoptera. Adults of these beetles are no- ticeable due to their relatively large size, bright colors, often elaborate ornamentation and interesting life histories. About 30,000 species of Scarabaeid beetles are known throughout the world (Fincher,1981), which performs a series of ecologi- cal functions. Unlike the other groups of insects, this family contains both beneficial (Dung beetles) and harmful (Chaf- fers) beetles. Dung beetle is a common name applied to bee- tles in the subfamilies Scarabaeinae and Aphodiinae; while most species in the subfamilies Melolonthinae, Dynastinae, Rutelinae, and Cetoniinae feed on plant products and are ag- ricultural pests of various commercial crops. Through their habit of burrowing and burying dung as food for their off- spring, dung beetles perform several ecological functions such as nutrient cycling, soil aeration (Mittal,1993b), seed dispers- al (Estrada and Coates-Estrada,1991 & Larsen,2004) and regu- lation of enteric parasites and dung breeding dipteran pests (Borenmissza,1970 and Fincher,1981). The first comprehensive account of Scarabaeid bee- tles of the Indian region was published by Arrow (1910,1917, &1931) in three volumes of Fauna of British India, whereas 58 species were reported from Madhya Pradesh. Balthasar (1963a, 1963b &1964) wrote monographs on the two subfamilies Scar- abaeinae and Aphodiinae of Palaearctic and Oriental region. Chandra and Ahirwar (2007) gave a comprehensive account on Scarabaeid beetles of Madhya Pradesh along with their district-wise distribution and different collection localities. They reported 124 species/subspecies of Scarabaeid beetles belonging to 45 genera under 11 subfamilies. The beetle diver- sity of Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve (PBR) is mostly dealt by Chandra & Gupta (2002), Chandra & Singh (2004) and Chan-