Diversity and Role of Entomological Fauna Associated With Annona senegalensis (Magnoliales: Annonaceae) in Burkina Faso, West Africa

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Résumé

Annona senegalensis Pers. is a shrub of tropical countries that, during the fruiting period, harbor many
insects. All parts of the plant are used and exploited in traditional medicine, food, and firewood. Our
study aimed at evaluating the diversity of insects associated with the different phenological stages of A.
senegalensis fruits in two phytogeographic zones of Burkina Faso. Sampling was carried out on flowers,
green fruits, ripe fruits, and decayed fruits of A. senegalensis. For the first time, a total of 48 insects species belonging to 6 orders and 23 families were identified. These orders were Orthoptera, Hemiptera,
Hymenoptera, Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, and Diptera. Our data indicated that the diversity of insect species varies according to the stages of development of the fruit (P = 0.017) and according to the site (P =
2.2e-16). Among these insects, Curculionidae (Endaeus spp.) predominate on flowers, are known to be
pollinators, and Formicidae (Messor galla Mayr, [Hymenoptera: Formicidae], Trichomyrmex abyssinicus
Forel, [Hymenoptera: Formicidae], and Crematogaster sp.) and Tettigometridae (Hilda undata Walker,
[Hemiptera: Tettigometridae]) are suspected to have mutualistic relationships on green fruits. Potential
pests belonging to the Scarabaeidae (Pachnoda spp., Polybaphes spp., and Xeloma Maura Boheman,
[Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae]), Drosophilidae (Zaprionus indianus Gupta, [Diptera: Drosophilidae]), and
Nitidulidae (Carpophilus nepos Murray, [Coleoptera: Nitidulidae]) are associated with ripe and decayed
fruits. The data in this study highlight the diversity in terms of pollinators that ensure the fruit production
and Formicidae known to protect A. senegalensis against potential pests. These data provide valuable information in terms of valuation of this plant.

Mots-clés

pest, wild fruit, biological diversity, plant–insect relationship, semiarid zone