Insect pollinators diversity on mustard in Sarkaghat (Mandi) of Himachal Pradesh

Pollen grains are transferred from the male anther to the female stigma of blooming plants during pollination. Pollination by insects, birds, bats, and other animals is essential for plants, with insects playing a major part. Plant reproduction and ecosystem function depend on pollination, which also affects biodiversity, food production, and the general health of the environment. Even though mustard plants have both male and female parts, they cannot pollinate themselves; instead, pollinators, especially bees transfer pollen between blooms, which is essential for increasing yield and crop output overall. The present investigation on insect pollinator diversity on mustard in Sarkaghat, Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh was conducting in the Department of Biosciences, M.L.S.M. College, Sundernagar and Sarkaghat (Mandi), Himachal Pradesh during January-February, 2025. Insect pollinators collected by using hand picking, fluorescent pan traps and sweep net capture during January-February, 2025 and revealed a 34 species of insects belonging to 5 order and 12 families of class insect. Of these 13 species belonged to Hymenoptera, 10 from Diptera, 8 from Lepidoptera, 2 from Coleoptera and 1 from Thysanoptera. Honey bees were the most prevalent and regular visitors among the insects sampled using various techniques. In addition to Hymenopterans, Dipterans are a significant category of pollinators of insects.