Diversity factors and population variation of insects associated to Pineapple (Ananas comosus L. Merril) in Ticuantepe, Nicaragua

Abstract

The pineapple (Ananas comosus L. Merril) is among others fruits, one of the most accepted crops in Nicaragua, regionally and internationally, being nationally an increased production fruits. The objectives of this study were, identifi cation, abundance, richness, diversity, population dynamics and eating habits of the main insect families associated to pineapple. This study was conducted in the period from March to September 2014, in the pineapple area of the Municipality of Ticuantepe, The study was conducted in six pineapple farms where three Pitfall traps for catching crawling insects, three plastic gallons with molasses traps for catching flying insects were placed, in addition, insects on fruits, foliage and soil were manually collected. This research found that the main families found associated to pineapple were; Formicidae, Scarabaeidae, Pseudococcidae, Elateridae, Noctuidae, Nymphalidae, Cerambicidae and Lycaenidae. The insect diversity was estimated using the Shannon- Weaver diversity index, the family with the highest diversity was Formicidae, regarding the insect richness, fifty one families and eighty four genus were found, the most numerous families were; Formicidae, Scarabaidae, Tenebrionidae and Pentatomidae, in regard to the population dynamics, insect families with the highest incidence were: Formicidae, Scarabaidae and Pseudococcidae, higher insect fl uctuations occurred in the months of April, May and July, the main eating habits of insect associated to pineapple were found as, defoliators, soil pests, sniffers phloem, bark borers plant, pollinators, predators, parasitoids and degraders organic matter.