Flower-visiting insect pollinators of mustard (Brassica napus) in Jammu Region

Abstract

The present studies on Flower-Visiting Insect Pollinators of Mustard (Brassica napus) in Jammu region, India were conducted at Entomological Research farm, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Jammu. The blooming crop of the Mustard was visited by 15 species of insects belonging to 4 orders and 7 families of class insects. Hymenopterans were the most dominant visitors constituting (87.48, 88.18) per cent of the insect pollinators, followed by other insect pollinators (12.52, 11.82%) in 2014-15 and 2015-16 respectively. Among the hymenopterans species, Apis mellifera L. was highest in number (28.09, 28.31%) of the visitors of mustard flowers, followed by Apis cerana F. (25.10, 25.48%), Apis dorsata F. (18.00, 18.09%), Apis florea F. (8.53, 7.90%), Xylocopa fenestrata (5.55, 5.71 %) and other insect pollinators (12.52, 11.82%). of the total flower visiting insect pollinators in 2014-15 and 2015-16 respectively. The foraging activity of honeybees increased with temperature and sunshine and decreased with relative humidity, wind speed and rainfall. However, the species differences in the population dynamics of bees were evident as of all the honey bees Apis mellifera was most abundant followed by A. cerana >A. dorsata >A. florae >X. fenestrata. The foraging population of Apis mellifera was highly significant and positively correlated with maximum temperature and sunshine hours and negatively with relative humidity in the evening but was non-significant with minimum temperature, relative humidity in the morning, rainfall and wind speed. Same trend was observed for Apis florea However, the foraging population of Apis cerana was significant and positively correlated with maximum temperature and minimum temperature but was non-significant with relative humidity in the morning and evening, rainfall, sunshine hours and wind speed. Same trend was observed for Apis dorsata and other pollinator but other pollinator was highly significant and positively correlated with sunshine hours. In case of Xylocopa fenestrate was non-significant with all-weather parameters. This clearly reveals that all the four species of honeybees and other pollinators varied in their response to climatic conditions prevailing at a unit time.