Importance of methodology in the interpretation of factors affecting degradation of dung.

Many factors affect dung degradation and colonization, including the location, composition, moisture content, weight, surface area and organic matter content of dung pats. Because of the number and variability of these factors, methodology plays a major role in studies using the dung pat as an experimental unit. For results of such studies to be meaningful, conditions should be standardized as much as possible and the sampling technique should be systematic and consistent. This paper reports the results of experiments or trials which pay particular attention to aspects of methodology.