Insect floral visitors of Phytelephas macrocarpa (Arecaceae), a dioecious palm in the north-western Peruvian Amazon

Ramírez-Castillo S.A.; Del-Castillo Á.M.R.; Grandez-Rios J.M.; Mejía K.; Wong-Sato A.A.; Rodríguez-Cabrera E.H. · Boletin de la Asociacion Espanola de Entomologia (2024) · DOI: 10.70186/baeeawqq9436

Resumen

Phytelephas macrocarpa is a dioecious palm that lacks studies on the entomofauna that visit its flowers in western Amazonia. In this study we identified the insect visitors and their interaction with the inflorescences of P. macrocarpa in two localities in northwestern Peruvian Amazonia. Additionally, the richness and abundance of these insects was determined. For this purpose, six inflorescences were collected per locality (three male and three female). During field trips, the interactions of the insects on the inflorescences were observed. A total of 28 106 insects distributed in 27 species were recorded, where Amazoncharis sp., Aleochara sp. and Anchylorhynchus sp. were the most abundant. Twelve species were also recognized as pollinators, 10 as pollinivores and 5 as sa-prophagous. The floral visitor community is mainly composed of insects of the orders Coleoptera, Hymenoptera and Diptera. The families Staphylinidae, Curculionidae and Nitidulidae are the main pollination-related visitors, which help in the reproductive biology of the palm and, therefore, contribute to the conservation of the species.

Instituciones: Universidad Peruana Unión