Role of Insect Pollinators in Fruit Setting, Economic Value of Pollination, and Pollinator Fauna on Different Commercial Mango Varieties in South Punjab Pakistan

Mango is known as the second most important fruit crop in Pakistan after citrus. Pakistani mangoes are famous globally for their unique sweet taste and are exported to the Middle East, China, Afghanistan, and different European countries. Although mangoes have been cultivated in Punjab, Pakistan since ancient times, yield of mangoes is still very low, about 8-10 tons per hectare. Successful pollination is required to achieve a bumper crop. In this regard, an experiment was conducted at Mango Research Institute, Multan to understand the role of insects' in successful pollination and fruit setting in Southern Punjab-Pakistan. The experiment consisted of three varieties (Sindhri, Retaul No.12, and SB Chaunsa) and two treatments (netted and open trees). The netted trees of each variety were covered with mosquito net before initiation of flowering, while the open trees of the same varieties were not covered with net. Overall, we found that insects are necessary for pollination and fruit setting. There was no fruit setting i.e. zero fruits per panicle in netted trees where the insects could not visit, the inflorescence during peak period. Maximum fruit setting occurred on trees where the trees were not covered with net. The most abundant insect was blue bottle flies. The other insects in the order of abundance were house flies, syrphid flies, native drones, zebra flies, stingless bees, bumble bee, wild bees, and flesh flies. Honey bees Apis florea can be utilized as the pollinator but honey bee species A. dorsata, and A. melliferae visitation was almost negligible. The total value of insect pollination was estimated as 1299 million dollars. Overall, this is the first study describing the role of pollinators in successful fruit setting in southern Punjab Pakistan and describing the pollinating insects of mango orchards during peak flowering season.