Documentation of Insects as Flower Visitors in Selected Domesticated and Wild Plants in Lower Gangetic Plain of West Bengal

Abstract

The pollination of plants is greatly affected by a variety of insects, which are flower visitors. They indirectly determine the survival and reproduction of plant populations. Bees, butterflies, moths, and flies are among the most common insects that regularly visit and feed on flowers. Plant pollination is essential to both native and domesticated plants. However, they are now under threat for a number of reasons. These include the indiscriminate use of pesticides, habitat fragmentation, and increased cultivation practices. The proposed research seeks to come up with an elaborate dataset on the diversity of common flower visiting insects between the domesticated and wild vegetation in North 24 Parganas, West Bengal, India. To observe flower visiting insects, three domesticated plants which included Solanum melongena, Brassica nigra and Cucumis sativus and one wild plant, Ziziphus mauritiana were taken in this study. In the Solanum melongena, Brassica nigra, Cucumis sativus and Zizyphus mauritiana, 7, 5, 3 and 13 species of insects were detected in the flowers accordingly. These insects are under the orders Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, and Diptera. This information will become an invaluable asset in the future and will contribute to the conservation of local flora and fauna.