The oil palm pollinating weevil, Elaeidobius kamerunicus Faust (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) was first introduced into Malaysia from Cameroon as the main oil palm pollinator in 1981. Since then, oil palm pollination has improved and the need for assisted pollination has reduced. However, their pollinating behavior may be influenced by starvation, sexes and sources (wild-caught and lab-reared). A study to determine the effect of starvation level, sexes and sources of E. kamerunicus on their diurnal behavior was conducted utilizing two hours of direct observation between 1130 and 1330 h. The frequency and the time spent for several diurnal behaviors on oil palm flowers were recorded and evaluated. Starvation prevented the weevils from conducting the activities because they probably had to focus more on searching for food to gain energy to perform other behavior. Wild-caught and lab-reared E. kamerunicus differed in their size, while sexes of E. kamerunicus significantly affect the diurnal behavior. However, an in-depth study is needed to determine the relationship between the diurnal behavior of E. kamerunicus and oil palm production.
This checklist serves as a basic information based on compilation from published literatures, internet database, and from specimens collection stored at Center of Insect Systematics Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. To date, this study compiled smaller arachnids (28 species) and Pseudoscorpiones (41 species) that had been recorded in Malaysia. Although smaller arachnid orders were concentrated at localities with average rainfall and humidity, Pseudoscorpiones can be found at both wet and dry environments. More work is needed to determine the species diversity and distribution of these cryptic group.
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