A Survey of Insects Incriminated on Decaying Banana/Plantain (Musa sp) Pseudostems In Selected Crop Plots Within Umuahia And Ikwuano L.G.A Areas Of Abia State:- Okore Oghale O

ABSTRACT The insect fauna of decaying Banana/Plantain pseudostems were surveyed in three neighbouring towns of Abia State of Nigeria between September 2002 and February 2003 and July to October 2003. The study involved dissections of cut decaying pseudostems, culturing of immature stages of insects to adulthood and use of improvised traps and trapping systems. Ten orders of insects were incriminated. The orders Coleoptera and Diptera were most prevalent with proportionate representations of 130.00 and 110.00 respectively in a pie chart. Most of the insects using the decaying banana/plantain pseudostems as a biotope spent their entire life on it except for dipteran species that use it for reproductive purposes. The Bunana weevil, Cosmopolites sordidus, Temnoschiota sp. Amitermes evuncifer and Gonocephalum simplex were found to be of economic importance; Anopheles sp. is of medical importance. These species, with the others documented all play a role in aiding the decomposition process thus contributing to nutrient turnover. The abundances of the insects (except one) were not influenced by the amount of rainfall as they showed nonsignificance to the applied student t-test. Only the Rat-tail Maggot showed significance synchronizing its pupation period to the drier months of the year. The amount of rainfall important pest of banana/plantain in Afric