ABSTRACT

An ecological survey of the insect species of an arboretum in Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike was carried out to determine the insect diversity of the arboretum. The direct enumeration method was used to identify and inventorize the tree species of the arboretum. A sweep net was used to capture the insect fauna and their photographs were taken using a digital camera. A total number of 19 plant families were observed, each represented by less than 3 different individual trees species. The plant family Meliaceae had a total number of 22 individual tree species with Khaya ivorensis having 8 individual tree species, Lovoa trichilioides having 8 individual tree species and Entandrophragma spp having 6 individual tree species. Also the plant species families Irvingiaceae and Rutaceae had a total number of 14 and 10 individual tree species respectively. Moraceae had a total number of 10 individual tree species. However, some of the other plant species families recorded had less than 10 individual tree species. Five species of the family Papilionidea were recorded in the arboretum. A total of 9 insect families were recorded. Plant—animal symbiotic interactions were observed in the arboretum; they include mutualism and parasitism. There is need to carry out more exploratory study of the insect—plant species interactions because insects play significant ecological roles such as pollination, herbivory, seed dispersal and soil aeration.