DIVERSITY OF INSECT POLLINATORS CAPTURED FROM FEMALE OIL PALM FLOWERS IN LADANG JERANGAU, TERENGGANU
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46754/umtjur.v7i2.633Keywords:
Elaeidobius kamerunicus, Pyroderces sp., anthesis days, Elaeis guineensis, abundanceAbstract
Low population of insect pollinators in oil palm plantations is one of the factors that contributes to low fruit sets of the oil palm tree, Elaeis guineensis. This study was conducted in an oil palm plantation in Terengganu to determine the species diversity of insect pollinators observed on female oil palm flowers and to compare the insect species composition between two anthesis days. Insect pollinators were captured using bottle traps placed on 12 female flowers (one trap per flower) from 1000 hr to 1100 hr on days two and three of anthesis. Sampling was conducted between December 2019 and January 2020, and again from July to October 2020. Accordingly, the trapped insects were then observed under a dissecting microscope for species identification. A total of 174 individuals from 15 species were recorded in this study. The most common insects observed were the two known oil palm pollinators, Elaeidobius kamerunicus and Pyroderces sp., which accounted for 55% and 16% of the total captures, respectively. The Shannon diversity index calculated for the insects visiting the female oil palm flowers was H’ = 1.618. Moreover, comparison between the two anthesis days indicates that the insect diversity was higher on the second day (Shannon diversity index, H’ = 1.6327) than on the third day (H’ = 1.3679). However, this was not significantly different at p = 0.05. Several other insects were also reported, indicating potential as pollinators by visiting the flowers on both anthesis days, although with much lower abundance. Thus, this study contributes to the knowledge of other potential insects as pollinators of oil palm trees. Hopefully, this study will benefit plantation managers in implementing entomofauna-friendly management in the oil palm plantations.
References
Adam, H., Collin, M., Richaud, F., Beule, T., Cros, D., Omore, D., Nodichao, L., Nouy, B., & Tregear, J. W. (2011). Environmental regulation of sex determination in oil palm: Current knowledge and insights from other species. Annals of Botany, 108(8), 1529-1537. https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcr151
Appiah, S. O., & Agyei-Dwarko, D. (2013). Studies on entomophil pollination towards sustainable production and increased profitability in the oil palm: A review. Elixir Agriculture, 55, 12878-12883.
Auffray, T., Frérot, B., Poveda, R., Louise, C., & Beaudoin-Ollivier, L. (2017). Diel patterns of activity for insect pollinators of two oil palm species (Arecales: Arecaceae). Journal of Insect Science, 17(2), 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1093/jisesa/iex018
Basri, M. W., Halim, A. H., & Hitam, A. H. (1983). Current status of Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust and its effects on the oil palm industry in Malaysia (6, 39-40). Palm Oil Research Institute of Malaysia.
Corley, R. H. V., & Tinker, P. B. (2016). The oil palm (5th ed.). West Sussex: World Agriculture Series. 639 pp. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118953297
Egonyu, J. P., Sisye, S. E., Baguma, J., Otema, J., & Ddamulira, G. (2021). Insect flowervisitors of African oil palm Elaeis guineensis at different sites and distances from natural vegetation in Uganda. International Journal of Tropical Insect Science, 41, 2477-2487. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42690-021-00426-6
Godswill, N.-N., Frank, N.-E. G., Walter, A.-N., Edson, M.-Y. J., Kingsley, T.-M., Arondel, V., Martin, B. J., & Emmanuel, Y. (2016). Oil palm. In Gupta, S. K. (Ed.), Breeding oilseed crops for sustainable production (pp. 217-273). San Diego: Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-801309-0.00010-0
Halim, A., Masijan, Z., Wahid, M. B., & Mohd Tayeb, D. (1988). The population census and the pollination efficiency of the weevil, Elaeidobius kamerunicus in Malaysia. A status report. 1983-1986. In Halim, A., Masijan, Z., Wahid, M. B., & Mohd Tayeb, D. (Eds.), International Oil Palm/Palm Oil Conferences-Progress and Prospects 1987- Conference 1: Agriculture, Kuala Lumpur, 23-26 Jun 1988. Kuala Lumpur: Institut Penyelidikan Minyak Kelapa Sawit Malaysia.
Kamaruddin, N., Wahid, M. B., & Masijan, Z. (2017). Handbook of common parasitioids and predators associated with bagworms and nettle caterpillars in oil palm plantations. Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), Kajang, Malaysia.
Lajis, N. H., Hussein, M. Y., & Toia, R. F. (1985). Extraction and identification of the main compound present in Elaeis guineensis flower volatiles. Pertanika, 8(1), 105-108.
Li, K., Tscharntke, T., Saintes, B., Buchori, D., & Grass, I. (2019). Critical factors limiting pollination success in oil palm: A systematic review. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 280, 152-160. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2019.05.001
Meléndez, M. R., & Ponce, W. P. (2016). Pollination in the oil palms Elaeis guineensis, E. oleifera and their hybrids (OxG), in tropical America. Pesquisa Agropecuária Tropical, 46(1), 102-110. https://doi.org/10.1590/1983-40632016v4638196
Muhammad Luqman, H. A., Dzulhelmi, M. N., Idris, A. B., & Izfa Riza, H. (2017). The potential natural predators of Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust, 1878 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in Malaysia. Serangga, 22(2), 239-252.
Parveez, G. K. A., Leow, S. S., Kamil, N. N., & Zairun, A. (2024). Oil palm economic performance in Malaysia and R&D progress in 2023. Journal of Oil Palm Research, 36(2), 171-186. https://doi.org/10.21894/jopr.2024.0037
Riley, S. O., Dery, S. K., Afreh-Nuamah, K., Agyei-Dwarko, D., & Ayizannon, R. G. (2022). Pollinators of oil palm and relationship to fruitset and yield in two fruit forms in Ghana. Oilseeds & Fats Crops and Lipids, 29(3), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1051/ocl/2022009
Sambathkumar, S., & Ranjith, A. M. (2011). Insect pollinators of oil palm in Kerala with special reference to African weevil, Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust. Pest Management in Horticultural Ecosystems, 17(1), 14-18.
Sambathkumar, S., & Ranjith, A. M. (2015). Studies on inflorescence production and pollination in oil palm. Progressive Horticulture, 47, 194-202. https://doi.org/10.5958/2249-5258.2015.00034.2
Siregar, E. H., Atmowidi, T., & Kahono, S. (2016). Diversity and abundance of insect pollinators in different agricultural lands in Jambi, Sumatera. Journal of Biosciences, 23(1), 13-17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hjb.2015.11.002
Stork, N. E. (2018). How many species of insects and other terrestrial arthropods are there on earth? Annual Review of Entomology, 63(1), 31-45. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-ento-020117-043348
Syed, R. A. (1979). Studies on oil palm pollination by insects. Bulletin of Entomological Research, 69(2), 213-224. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007485300017673
Syed, R. A., Law, I. H., & Corley, R. H. V. (1982). Insect pollination of oil palm: Introduction, establishment and pollinating efficiency of Elaeidobius kamerunicus in Malaysia. The Planter, 58, 547-561.
Tan, Y., & Wahid, M. B. (1984). Another pollinating insect of oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) Pyroderces species. In Tan, Y., & Wahid, M. B. (Eds.), Symposium of the Impact of the Pollinating Weevil on the Malaysian Oil Palm Industry, Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), 21-22 Feb 1984. Kuala Lumpur: Palm Oil Research Institute of Malaysia.
Teo, T. M. (2015). Effectiveness of the oil palm weevil, Elaeidobius kamerunicus, in Malaysia. UTAR Agriculture Science Journal, 1(4), 40-43.
Wahid, M. B., & Kamarudin, N. (1997). The role and effectiveness of Elaeidobius kamerunicus, Thrips hawaiiensis and Pyroderces sp. in pollination of mature oil palm in Peninsular Malaysia. Journal of Oil Palm Research, 9(1), 1-16.
Wojcik, V. (2021). Pollinators: Their evolution, ecology, management and conservation. Arthropods: Are they beneficial for mankind? IntechOpen, 1-22. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.97153
Yaakub, N. Z. Z., Shaipulah, N. F. M., Mohamed, N. Z., & Idrus, A. M. (2023). Flower development of male and female inflorescence of oil palm, Elaeis guineensis Jacq. Universiti Malaysia Terengganu Journal of Undergraduate Research, 5(4). https://doi.org/10.46754/umtjur.v5i4.440
Yue, J., Yan, Z., Bai, C., Chen, Z., Lin, W., & Jiao, F. (2015). Pollination activity of Elaeidobius kamerunicus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) on oil palm on Hainan Island. Florida Entomologist, 98(2), 499-505. https://doi.org/10.1653/024.098.0217
Additional Files
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Universiti Malaysia Terengganu Journal of Undergraduate Research
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
