Diversity Of Insect Pollinators Research Articles

The Diversity of pollinator insects in vegetable gardens, Kabawo District, Muna Regency

Pollinator insects play an important role in pollination to increase the productivity of flowering plants. The aim of this study was to analyze the abundance, diversity, and specific taxon of insect pollinators among different vegetable crops in local farmers' gardens. Insects were sampled from four gardens, namely polyculture long bean (KKP), eggplant polyculture (KT), curly chili monoculture (KCK), and Indofood chili monoculture (KCI) used nets and light traps. The results showed that the abundance and diversity of pollinator insects varied between gardens. The pollinator insect community in KCI was most similar to that in KCK; KT was similar to the KCI and KCK groups, while KKP were separate from the KT, KCK and KCI groups. The richest genus occurs in KKP, while chili plantations are the poorest. The apis genus in KKP and KT, and the Nomina genus in KCK and KCI were dominant. The specific pollinator insect genus in KKP is the richest. It concluded that plant species and cropping patterns contribute to the composition and diversity of the pollinator insect community.

Diversity and foraging activity of coffee insect pollinators in land near and far from the forest of North Sumatra, Indonesia

Abstract. Sinaga RR, Maryana N, Hidayat P. 2024. Diversity and foraging activity of coffee insect pollinators in land near and far from the forest of North Sumatra, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 25: 240-248. Coffee (Coffea spp.) is among the plant species that depend on insects to aid in its pollination process, where insect pollinators serve as intermediaries facilitating plant pollination. This study examined the diversity, abundance, and visiting activity of insect pollinators in coffee cultivation located in different areas, specifically those near the forest and those far from the forest in Simalungun District, North Sumatra. The study was carried out from September 2022 to February 2023 in six coffee cultivation sites spread across four sub-districts in Simalungun District, i.e., Silimakuta, Pematang Silimakuta, Purba, and Dolok Silau. The study's results revealed the presence of 16 species of insect pollinators in coffee cultivation near the forest and 13 species in those located far from the forest. The identified insect pollinators species were from Order Hymenoptera; Apis cerana, Lasioglossum sp., Dolichovespula norvegicoides, Diptera; Stomorhina discolor, Musca domestica, Bactrocera papayae, Nephrotoma flavescens, Episyrphus viridaureus, Oebalia sp., Coleoptera; Pachnaeus sp., Cantharis sp., Scarabaeidae sp 1., Maladera japonica, Lepidoptera; Agrotis segetum, Bradina diagonalis, and Nyctemera baulus. Notably, the abundance of coffee insect pollinators was more pronounced in close proximity to the forest compared to areas far from the forest. Regarding the visiting duration of these insects, S. discolor exhibited the longest visit duration of 76.46±1.19 seconds per flower, and the shortest duration in A. cerana was recorded at 8.35±0.23 seconds per flower.

Beware of trees: Pine afforestation of a naturally treeless habitat reduces flower and pollinator diversity

Planting three billion trees to capture carbon and seeking measures to reverse pollinator decline are two key pledges of the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030. Although planting trees could be adequate to restore biodiversity in degraded landscapes and mitigate anthropogenic carbon emissions, it can also negatively impact biodiversity of naturally treeless habitats. To explore whether these two pledges might conflict, we focused on the European dry heathland, a treeless habitat frequent in the southwestern Iberian Peninsula, where it is locally known as herriza. The herriza stands out by its high plant biodiversity and profuse flowering that supports a wide range of insect pollinators. Yet, the herriza has been heavily afforested with pine trees until the onset of the 21st century. This past activity provides a unique natural experiment to assess the effect of afforestation on flower abundance and associated pollinator diversity. We conducted a two-year field study of the diversity and abundance of flowers and pollinators in five selected sites, each consisting of two adjacent plots of open and afforested herriza. Afforested herriza plots had consistently lower diversity and abundance of flowers and insect pollinators than open herriza plots. Our results highlight the negative impact of afforestation of a treeless habitat on its flowering pattern and associated insect pollinator guilds. We thus suggest seeking alternatives to afforesting naturally treeless habitats in order to avoid conflicts between carbon sequestration and pollinator conservation.

Study on the diversity of insect pollinators and their host plants in Chitradurga, Karnataka, India

Study on the diversity of insect pollinators and their host plants in Chitradurga, Karnataka, India

The Diversity and Abundance of Insect Pollinators Visiting Apple Flowers

A study was conducted to determine the insect pollinators visiting apple flowers. In studies, Apple flowers attracted insects from five orders, including Hymenoptera, Diptera, Lepidoptera, Coleoptera and Thysanoptera. Of all the orders, insects belonging to order Hymenoptera were most abundant. They included honey bee Apis mellifera, Apiscerana, bumble bees Bombus sp. Anthophoride Xylocopafenestrata, X. aestuans X. pubescens, X. valga, Halictidae Halictus spp. Nomia spp. Lasiogllosum spp. Ceratina spp. Melissodes spp., Colletidae Colleteseous, vespidaeVespa orientalis, V. Cincta V. Mandarinia, Polistes hebraeus, megachilidae Osmia spp. Andrenidae Andrenaflaviceps, Formicide Camponotuscompressus. Honeybees were the most abundant of all flower visitors and made up more than 48% of the total.

Diversity and Abundance of Insect Pollinators Affecting Seed Production in Mustard (Brassica napus L.)

Diversity and Abundance of Insect Pollinators Affecting Seed Production in Mustard (Brassica napus L.)

Diversity and Relative Abundance of Insect Pollinators on Pigeon Pea (Cajanus cajan L.) in Gajapati District of Odisha

Background: Many cross pollinated flowering plants rely on pollinators for reproduction and survival. The pigeon pea (arhar), Cajanus cajan L., is the India’s most important pulse crop. It attracts pollinators because to its cross pollination nature, possible nectar and pollen source, attractive colour and scent of the seeds and timing of blossoming. As a result, a complete research of pigeon pea insect pollinator fauna shall be used to conserve those fauna for increasing pigeon pea pollination effectiveness. Methods: Diversity of different pollinating agents associated with the crop pigeon pea by observing their abundance, diversity, percentage contribution, dominance status and diversity following the statistical diversity indexes were recorded during Kharif, 2021-22 in the state of Odisha where the insect pollinators’ fauna was recorded through fixed plot survey. Result: Megachille lanata (Fabricius) was found to be the most dominant pollinator throughout the flowering period among seven different pollinators of order Hymenoptera. M. lanata and Megachille disjuncta (Fabricius) shown higher foraging activity i.e. 6.02 bees/5 min/m2 and 4.25 bees/5 min/m2 respectively. Subdominant class represented maximum species among different dominant status classes exhibited. Very less diversity was observed throughout the season but still more diversity has been observed at mid flowering stags during 10:00-11:00 AM..

Diversity and Abundance of Insect Pollinators of Cucurbits at Mid-Hills of Meghalaya, India

The current research was carried out at the ICAR-Research Complex for the North Eastern Hill Region (NEH) in Umiam, Meghalaya to investigate the diversity and abundance of insect pollinators of cucurbits at mid-hills of Meghalaya. Ridge gourd, sponge guard, pumpkin, teasel gourd, chow-chow, bottle guard and cucumber were taken as a target crop to observe the data on diversity and abundance. Total twenty-five (25) pollinators were observed in different cucurbits belongs to order Hymenoptera, Diptera and Lepidoptera which represents that mid-hills of Meghalaya have rich pollinator fauna. Out of 25 insect pollinators 3 pollinators identified from ridge gourd, 6 from sponge gourd, 4 from pumpkin, 3 from bottle gourd, 4 from cucumber, 3 from chow-chow and 2 from teasel gourd. Efficient pollinator was nominated on the basis of their abundance. During investigation it was found that bumble bee emerged as the most abundant pollinator in ridge gourd, pumpkin and sponge gourd. In sponge gourd carpenter bee also showed almost equal abundance. Indian honey bee abundance was high in cucumber and in chow-chow. Among collected pollinators, hymenopterans were the abundant with 80% relative abundance. It is clear from the recorded observation that native bees are equally contributing in pollination service so conservation of these bees is also a demand of nature. Activity time period of pollinators on flowers guided the farmers to avoid pesticide spray during particular time period.

Insect-pollinators and their interactions with plants differ in disturbed and semi-natural areas: Tanzania's Southern Highlands case study.

Due to inadequate insect-pollinator data, particularly in sub-Saharan African countries like Tanzania, it is difficult to manage and protect these species in disturbed and semi-natural areas. Field surveys were conducted to assess insect-pollinator abundance and diversity and their interactions with plants in disturbed and semi-natural areas in Tanzania's Southern Highlands using pan traps, sweep netting, transect counts, and timed observations techniques. We found that species diversity and richness of insect-pollinators were high in semi-natural areas, and there was 14.29% more abundance than in disturbed areas. The highest plant-pollinator interactions were recorded in semi-natural areas. In these areas, the total number of visits by Hymenoptera was more than three times that of Coleoptera, while that of Lepidoptera and Diptera was more than 237 and 12 times, respectively. Hymenoptera pollinators had twice the total number of visits of Lepidoptera, and threefold of Coleoptera, and five times more visits than Diptera in disturbed habitats. Although disturbed areas had fewer insect-pollinators and fewer plant-insect-pollinator interactions, our findings indicate that both disturbed and semi-natural areas are potential habitats for insect-pollinators. The study revealed that the over-dominant species Apis mellifera could influence diversity indices and network-level metrics in the study areas. When A. mellifera was excluded from the analysis, the number of interactions differed significantly between insect orders in the study areas. Also, Diptera pollinators interacted with the most flowering plants in both study areas compared to Hymenopterans. Though A. mellifera was excluded in the analysis, we found a high number of species in semi-natural areas compared to disturbed areas. Conclusively, we recommend that more studies be conducted in these areas across sub-Saharan Africa to unveil their potential for protecting insect-pollinators and how ongoing anthropogenic changes threaten them.

Study on Diversity, Distribution and Relative Abundance of Insect Pollinators of Prunus persica (L.) Stokes from Different Areas of Himachal Pradesh

Study on Diversity, Distribution and Relative Abundance of Insect Pollinators of Prunus persica (L.) Stokes from Different Areas of Himachal Pradesh

Informing policy and practice on insect pollinator declines: Tensions between conservation and animal welfare

Climate change, agricultural intensification, and other anthropogenic ecosystem challenges have caused declines in the diversity and abundance of insect pollinators. In response to these declines, entomologists have called for greater attention to insect pollinator conservation. Conservation primarily aims to protect groups of non-human animals—populations or species—with only secondary concern for the welfare of individual animals. While conservation and animal welfare goals are sometimes aligned, they often are not. And because animal welfare comes second, it tends to be sacrificed when in tension with conversation priorities. Consider, for example, lethal sampling to monitor many pollinator populations. Growing evidence suggests that the welfare of individual insect pollinators may be morally significant, particularly in the Hymenoptera and Diptera. Considering insect welfare in conservation practices and policies presents many challenges as, in the face of rapid, anthropogenic change, it may be impossible to avoid harming individual animals while promoting diverse populations. We suggest some practical, implementable strategies that can allow for more robust integration of animal welfare goals into insect pollinator conservation. By following these strategies, entomologists may be able to find policies and practices that promote the health of ecosystems and the individual animals within them.

Insect pollinator diversity and their foraging behaviour in Radish, Raphanus sativus L.

Radish is a cross-pollinated crop and honey bees are essential for its pollination. In the present investigation, the diversity and abundance of insect pollinators and additionally their visitation rate and frequency were also studied during 2019 and 2020. The foraging observations were noted at 08:00–10:00 hours (early morning foraging activity), 10:00-12:00 hours (late morning foraging activity), 12:00-14:00 hours (noon foraging activity), and 14:00-16:00 hours (afternoon foraging activity). The results revealed that nine species of bees, five flies, three butterflies, and three wasps species visited the flowers of radish during the study period. Apis florea, Apis mellifera, and Apis dorsata were the dominant pollinator species with 132-201, 110-130, and 90-115 individuals, respectively during the study duration. The maximum foraging activity of the dominant pollinators was observed at 14:00 hrs followed by 12:00 hrs whereas the minimum foraging activity was recorded in the early morning hours at 08:00. The frequency of floral visitors varied greatly, with A. florea (14.50-15.80 visits/flower/5 min) being the most frequent, followed by A. mellifera (9.80-11.00 visits/flower/5 min) and A. dorsata (8.30–9.40 visits/flower/5 min) in both seasons. Similarly, A. florea had statistically higher visitation rate (26.93–27.40 flowers visited/min) followed by A. mellifera (15.93–16.00 flowers visited/min) and A. dorsata (12.62-15.13 flowers visited/min). The findings suggested that A. florea, A. mellifera, and A. dorsata may be efficient radish pollinators. Therefore, on a commercial scale, these three species can be effectively used to increase crop yields.

Diversity and Relative Abundance of Insect Pollinators in Moroccan Agroecosystems

Agroecosystems are often impoverished ecosystems, but they can host diverse communities of insects which provide ecosystem services. Specifically, crops may benefit from insect pollinators that increase their quantity and quality of yields. Basic knowledge is still needed regarding the identity, diversity, abundance, and ecology of insect pollinators in many parts of the world, especially in low and middle-income countries. In this study we investigate the potential of agroecosystems and crops in Morocco to host a high diversity of insect pollinators. We sampled insects in four eco-climatic regions encompassing a total of 22 crops for 2 years (2018–2019). After describing the general pattern of diversity and abundance of insect pollinators, we focused our comparative analyses on bees as they are known to be the most efficient and abundant group of insect pollinators. We recorded a total of 53,361 insect pollinators in all agroecosystems among which 37,091 were visiting crop flowers. Bees were by far the most abundant group visiting crops. Honeybees represented 49% of crop visitors followed by wild bees representing 33% of relative abundance. Three genera (Lasioglossum,Andrena, andXylocopa) represented 53% of the total abundance of wild bees visiting crops. We identified a total of 213 species visiting crops (22% of national wild bee species richness). A comparison of the abundance, species richness, and community composition of wild bees visiting the same crops showed significant inter-regional differences for zucchini, faba bean, and eggplant. This study highlights the high diversity of pollinators in Moroccan agroecosystems and represents an important step toward exploring the Moroccan pollinator fauna. It provides basic information for future studies on pollinator conservation and pollination services.

Dampak Perubahan Iklim Terhadap Fenologi Phaseolus vulgaris L Faklutas Biologi Universitas Jenderal Soedirman

Climate change is a condition characterized by changing world climate patterns which results in erratic weather phenomena. Altitude is one of the climate control factors that have a strong influence on air temperature. There is a correlation between changes in air temperature and altitude in Indonesia. The increase in altitude causes the air temperature to decrease and the O2 content is getting thinner. Altitude also affects the biophysics and reproduction of agricultural plants a lot, which includes the response of a decrease in temperature to the growth of agricultural plants and their production. This study aims to determine the effect of climate change on the flowering phenology of green beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and the diversity of insect pollinators. Sampling was done by purposive sampling to collect flower data while Scan sampling was used to collect insect data. Samples were taken as many as 24 bean plants from the population at each location. There are six locations, namely 50 m asl, 200 m asl, 400 m asl, 600 m asl, 800 m asl, and 1,000 m asl. Plant parameters observed were plant height, number of leaves, number of branches, number of flowers, size of flowers and time of bloom and diversity of insect pollinators. The data obtained were analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and regression correlation analysis. The results of the analysis showed the influence of altitude on the time the flowers first appeared, the number of flowers and flower size. Beans grow and develop optimally at an altitude of 800 - 1,000 m asl.

Open habitats in a tropical biodiversity hotspot support pollinator diversity in both protected and unprotected areas

AbstractProtected areas (PAs) are vital in the global effort to preserve biodiversity, particularly for disturbance‐intolerant pollinator species in the tropics. As there is little information on the potential of PAs for pollinator conservation in sensitive tropical ecosystems, we assessed here insect pollinator diversity in protected vs. unprotected areas in two vegetation zones in Nigeria, within the West African Guinea Biodiversity Hotspot. We selected two land‐use types based on predominant canopy cover type (open and tree‐shaded habitats) and these were sampled in both protected and unprotected areas of tropical rain forest and savanna vegetation zones. Pollinator composition varied significantly between protected vs. unprotected areas in each vegetation zone, signifying both areas support unique assemblages of insect pollinators. However, pollinator diversity varied according to land‐use type (open vs. shaded habitats) rather than protected area per se, such that pollinators were more abundant and species‐rich in open habitat than shaded habitat. These findings emphasize that beyond the protection of ecosystems, fine scale habitat management promoting the availability of adequate floral resources in natural areas is critical for ensuring conservation of these pollinators in tropical ecosystems.

Diversity and Abundance of Flower Visiting Insects Associated with Sesame

A field experiment was conducted at the Research farm of Department of Entomology, CCS Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU) Hisar, Haryana to determine the diversity and abundance of insect pollinators on two varieties of sesame HT-1 and HT-2 during 2017 and 2018. A total of 34 insect species belonging to 18 families from four orders were observed. Of these Apis dorsata (4.76 bees/ m²/ 5 min; 26.92% of total flower visitors) followed by A. mellifera (2.34 bees/ m²/ 5 min), M. lanata (2.23 bees/ m²/ 5 min) and A. florea (1.32 bees/ m²/ 5 min) were predominant. Peak activity of the insect visitors was observed at 1000-1200 hr of the day.

Physiological stress and higher reproductive success in bumblebees are both associated with intensive agriculture.

Free-living organisms face multiple stressors in their habitats, and habitat quality often affects development and life history traits. Increasing pressures of agricultural intensification have been shown to influence diversity and abundance of insect pollinators, and it may affect their elemental composition as well. We compared reproductive success, body concentration of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N), and C/N ratio, each considered as indicators of stress, in the buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris). Bumblebee hives were placed in oilseed rape fields and semi-natural old apple orchards. Flowering season in oilseed rape fields was longer than that in apple orchards. Reproductive output was significantly higher in oilseed rape fields than in apple orchards, while the C/N ratio of queens and workers, an indicator of physiological stress, was lower in apple orchards, where bumblebees had significantly higher body N concentration. We concluded that a more productive habitat, oilseed rape fields, offers bumblebees more opportunities to increase their fitness than a more natural habitat, old apple orchards, which was achieved at the expense of physiological stress, evidenced as a significantly higher C/N ratio observed in bumblebees inhabiting oilseed rape fields.

Diversity of insect pollinators in Mount Carmel College campus, Bengaluru

An Insect pollinator diversity study was conducted on the campus of Mount Carmel College, Bengaluru to analyze the species abundance. There were a total of 27 species recorded with the Subclass Endopterygota dominating with 25 species and Subclass Paraneoptera consisting of only two species. Order Hymenoptera was found to be the most abundant and Order Lepidoptera being the second most abundant. Among the Families, Apidae was the most abundant and Vespidae, Nymphalidae and Pieridae being the second most abundant followed by Formicidae and Papilionidae.

Diversity of Insect Pollinators on Sesame

Field experiment was carried out to explore the pollinator fauna and their abundance and diversity on sesamum. The results revealed 19 pollinators belonging to six families from three orders viz., Hymenoptera, Diptera and Coleoptera. Among these the order Hymenoptera was predominant having 15 species with maximum relative abundance. Foraging behaviour of Apis sp. was more (4.19 individuals/ m2/ 5 min) and non Apis sp. was less (1.12 individuals/ m2/ 5 min). Eventhough Diptera and Coleoptera shared equal number of species, the foraging behaviour and abundance was maximum with Diptera (1.02 individuals/ m2/ 5 min). The sesamum ecosystem flourished with pollinators during 0800-1000 and 1000-1200 hr with higher diversity indices of Shannon’s H (2.52) during 1000-1200 hr and Simpson’s D index (0.22) between 1600-1800 hr. Shannon’s E index was higher (0.85) during 1000-1200 and 1600-1800 hr

Can novel seed mixes provide a more diverse, abundant, earlier, and longer-lasting floral resource for bees than current mixes?

Several agri-environment schemes aim to improve pollinator diversity and abundance, including the sowing of wildflower areas. These seed mixes are often either low in floral diversity and target few pollinator species (mainly social bees), or high in floral diversity but with limited evidence of good establishment of the component species. In order to support a greater diversity of wild bees in farmland, we need more diverse seed mixes, containing species shown to support a wide diversity of insect pollinators, with good establishment and long flowering periods. Here we trialled two typical seed mixes, a low-diversity Fabaceae-heavy mix (FAB) and a more diverse wildflower mix (WF), against two novel wildflower mixes, one based on literature sources (LT), and one based on first-hand surveys of pollinator attraction to flowers growing on a wildflower farm (WB). Both new mixes were focussed on plants attractive to wild bee species. Replicated field plots were set up on two farms and monitored over three years. Our novel wildflower mixes had higher floral diversity and abundance than the FAB mix, and began flowering earlier, reaching their floral peak before the FAB mix, potentially providing forage for a broader range of pollinators or those with earlier flight seasons. The high floral abundance in LT and WB was driven by annuals in the first year, and then multiple perennials in the second and third year. We identified five perennials from four families (Daucus carota, Leucanthemum vulgare, Geranium pyrenaicum, Lotus corniculatus and Trifolium hybridum) that established well on both farms, are known to be attractive to a diversity of bee species, and thus could be considered as providing a more taxonomically diverse base for creating future mixes. However, the mixes provided few floral resources in April (needed by early-flying wild bees), and more research is required in this area.