A Study on Pollinating Insect Diversity in Selected Areas of Pudunagaram Village, Palakkad, Kerala, India
Karthika. R
PG & Research Department of Zoology, Sree Neelakanta Government Sanskrit College, Pattambi, Palakkad. PIN- 679306. Kerala, India.
Zeena. K.V *
PG & Research Department of Zoology, Sree Neelakanta Government Sanskrit College, Pattambi, Palakkad. PIN- 679306. Kerala, India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The present study on Pollinating insect diversity of selected areas of Pudunagaram village, Palakkad, Kerala was conducted for a period of six months from January 2022 – June 2022. Two sites were selected which are diverse in habitats; one is Mangode, the home garden where floral plants were cultivated, and the second is Karippode, the forest area with wild plants. Visual observation and hand- picking methods were used for collection. A total of 49 species belonging to 5 orders and 15 families were recorded of which Order Lepidoptera was dominant with 29 species. In site-1 family Nymphalidae and in site-2 Apidae was dominant. The Shannon diversity index study revealed that insect diversity is slightly higher in site-1 (2.313) as compared to site-2(2.25).
Keywords: Pollinating insects, Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae, Karipode, Mangode, The Shannon diversity index, Conservation