Preliminary Assessment of Foraging Behavior of Bombus haemorrhoidalis Smith in Doon Valley, Uttarakhand, India

Introduction: Bumblebee, the native pollinator belongs to family Apidae of genus Bombus is the most suitable pollinator in agroecosystem and forested areas.

Method: Preliminary study on foraging behavior of Bombus haemorrhoidalis Smith has been conducted in Doon Valley, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, which is surrounded by agroecosystem and subtropical temperate landscape situated at the foothillsof outer Himalayan region with an altitudinal gradient of 640 m amsl. The study was conducted in four different habitats viz. riverine; agricultural fields; forest area and semi urban areas of Doon Valley. Samples were collected from all habitats with the help of systematic net sweeps and examined in the laboratory. Field observation on foraging behavior and species abundance with emergence of queen bee has been documented from October 2020 to April 2021

Results and Conclusion: The preferred foraging plant species are Cirsium arvense( Asteraceae), Lantana sp. (Verbenaceae), Tropaeolum majus (Tropaeolaceae) and Solanum melongena (Solanaceae). Their foraging activity depends on seasonal availability of floral resources in the study area.