A rare species of cuckoo wasp has been spotted in the county for the first time, from two sacred groves in Kasaragod district and from Vadakara in Kozhikode district.
Researchers of the Shadpada Entomology Research Lab (SERL), Christ College, Irinjalakuda, Thrissur, have reported spotting ‘Chrysidea falsa’ from the sacred groves of Koyithatta Sree Dharmashastha Kavu and Edayilakkad in Kasaragod and from Vadakara in Kozhikode.
Aswathi P.G., research scholar, and Bijoy C., assistant professor and Research Supervisor of the SERL, are behind the discovery. The study has been published in the latest issue of the international journal, Taprobanica. The study was funded by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).
This species had previously been reported from China, Malaysia and Philippines and this discovery had extended the known range of this species, Dr. Bijoy said.
The Shadpada Entomology Research Lab is the only lab dedicated to the study of cuckoo wasps in the country.
With this, 121 species of cuckoo wasps have been reported from the country. Of this, seven are discovered by this research team of the Shadpada Entomology Research Lab. “More cuckoo wasps are being identified and the studies are yet to be published,” said Dr. Bijoy.
The researchers collected six specimens of ‘Chrysidea falsa’ — five from Kasaragod and one from Vadakara. The specimens were found from small rock crevices and on the brick walls of an abandoned house respectively.
Though the sacred groves in Kasaragod had a rich biodiversity, the area where the wasp was spotted in Vadakara has sparse vegetation, implying that the species occurs in a variety of habitats. Therefore a wider distribution of the species was expected, they said.
According to the recent faunal checklist published, studies on Chrysididae are still scarce in the country and more species of Chrysididae can be expected in the diverse ecosystems of the country, according to the researchers.
