Diversity of vespid wasps (Hymenoptera:Vespidae) in agroecosystem and forest ecosystem of Western Ghats region of Goa, India

Abstract

The present study was aimed to document and compare the diversity of vespid wasps (Hymenoptera:Vespidae) in the forest ecosystem and agroecosystem located in the Western Ghats region of Goa, India. We used moericke traps for sampling and collected a total of 231 individuals belonging to 19 species, 12 genera and 4 subfamilies of Vespidae between January to December 2019. It was found that the forest ecosystem with 125 individuals belonging to 19 species, 12 genera and 4 subfamilies was rich in Vespidae diversity as compared to agroecosystem with 106 individuals belonging to 13 species, 7 genera and 3 subfamilies.