Insects Associated With Tea and Their Identification at Ntri (Shinkiari) Mansehra, Pakistan

Abstract

Tea plants are visited by different types of insects including tea pests and pollinator. The objective of the study was to identify tea associated insects in National Tea Research Institute (NTRI), Mansehra, Pakistan during April-June 2012. A collection of tea associated insects was made during April-June 2012 in Tea Experimental Garden (TEG), NTRI, Mansehra, Pakistan. A total of 128 samples were collected from TEG randomly. During the present research, 10 species were identified. Species collected were brush-footed butterfly, Argynnis hyperbius (Linnaeus, 1763); painted lady, Vanessa cardui (Linnaeus, 1758), Lucerne butterfly, Colias electo (Linnaeus, 1763)( Nymphalidae); small cabbage white butterfly, Pieris rapae (Linnaeus, 1758), white cabbage butterfly, Pieris brassicae (Linnaeus, 1758)( Pieridae); Asiatic honey bee, Apis cerana Fabricius, 1793, Western honey bee, Apis mellifera Linnaeus, 1758(Apidae); seven-spot ladybird Coccinella septempunctata (Linnaeus, 1758)( Coccinellidae); blue marsh hawk Orthetrum glaucum (Brauer, 1865), Crimson-tailed marsh hawk, Orthetrum pruinosum neglectum (Rambur, 1842)( Libellulidae). Different numbers of individuals were collected of each species. Seventeen individuals of P. brassicae, 16 of C. septempunctata, 15 of P. rapae, 14 of C. electo, 13 of V. cardui and A. cerana, 10 of A. mellifera, 9 of O. pruinosum neglectum and 7 of O. glaucum.It is concluded that there is a diversity to explain tea associated insects in NTRI, Mansehra, Pakistan.