The Diversity of Hymenoptera on Pummelo (Citrus maxima (Burm.) Merr.)
Hymenoptera play important ecological roles in agroecosystems as parasitoids, predators, and pollinators. This study investigated the species composition and diversity of Hymenoptera in a conventionally managed pummelo (Citrus maxima (Burm.) Merr.) orchard in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province, China, from February 2025 to February 2026. A total of 8446 specimens were collected using Malaise traps and sweep netting, belonging to 11 superfamilies, 37 families, and 191 morphospecies. The community was dominated by parasitoids (140 morphospecies, 73.30%), followed by predators (30 morphospecies, 15.71%), pollinators (18 morphospecies, 9.42%), and phytophagous gall-inducers (3 morphospecies, 1.57%). Ichneumonoidea (42 morphospecies, 21.99%), Chalcidoidea (35 morphospecies, 18.32%), Vespoidea (30 morphospecies, 15.71%) and Apoidea (28 morphospecies, 14.66%) were the dominant superfamilies, collectively accounting for 70.68% of all morphospecies. At the family level, Ichneumonidae (25 morphospecies), Braconidae (17 morphospecies), Bethylidae (13 morphospecies), and Pompilidae and Scelionidae (11 morphospecies each) were the most morphospecies-rich families. Shannon–Wiener diversity was higher at the family level (H′ = 2.9340) than at the superfamily level (H′ = 2.0302), indicating greater heterogeneity at a finer taxonomic resolution. These results demonstrate that the surveyed pummelo orchard in Xishuangbanna harbors a species-rich and functionally diverse hymenopteran community with substantial potential for biological pest control and pollination services.
Authors
- Qinlin Deng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-7206-3491)
- Caihong Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7903-2747)
- Xiaojiao Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1746-6099)
- Shide Gao
- Xiangzeng Xu
- Xue Li
Institutions
- Yunnan Institute of Tropical Crops (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Insects
- Published
- 2026-08-24
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/insects17090886
- Primary Topic
- Hymenoptera taxonomy and phylogeny
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00