Diversity of Insect Pollinators Visiting Boerhavia Diffusa L.(Nyctaginaceae) A Common Weed in Virudhunagar Block, Tamil Nadu

Insect pollinators are ecologically important in the ecosystem and essential for pollination, and to maintain valuable plant regeneration. The plant-pollinator relationships not only enhance the probability of cross pollination but also improve pollinator efficiency. Nevertheless, the evidences overwhelming, that wild pollinators declining around the world as a result of habitat loss and fragmentation, lack of forage due to mono-cropping and widespread use of pesticides. Consequently, the need to conserve for the efficient utilization of useful biodiversity such as pollinators and to gather species-specific baseline information on floral host plants preferences, seasonal dynamics, ecological relationships with host plant and environmental factors. Hence the data is based on insect pollinators visiting one of the wild medicinal plants, Boerhavia diffusa L., commonly called Hogweed with pink colored flowers blossomed throughout the year. This research has identified 4 Orders of Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, Diptera and Coleoptera with 14 species of insects comes under 9 Families. Pseudapis oxybeloides Smith. (Soil nesting Bee) an abundant species in the study area and Zizula hylax Fabricius (Tiny grass blue butterfly) active throughout the year. Accordingly, the documentation to conservation programmes for insect pollinators and wild medicinal plants that would also indirectly benefit other crop pollinations too. However globally, many plants are under threat due to human population and industrial development and their fate depends upon preserving the mutualistic relationships with pollinators.