This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: FORBES, V., DUGMORE, A. J. and ÓLAFSSON, E. (2016), The life and death of barn beetles: faunas from manure and stored hay inside farm buildings in northern Iceland. Ecol Entomol, 41: 480–499., which has been published in final form at DOI: 10.1111/een.12321. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.