Pollen diversity of honey from northern and southern Prayagraj district Uttar Pradesh, India

Abstract Comparative pollen diversity of honey collected from northern and southern regions of Prayagraj district of Uttar Pradesh India during different honey flow periods were investigated in the present study. A total of 67 pollen types belonging to 32 plant families were recovered from 24 honey samples collected from different sampling points from the northern and the southern regions of Prayagraj district. While Brassica campestris, Dalbergia sissoo, Eucalyptus sp., Helianthus annuus, Peltophorum pterocarpum and Sesamum indicum were recorded as predominant pollen types in unifloral honey samples collected from the northern region; Ageratum conyzoides and Parthenium hysterophorus were recorded in honey samples from the southern region. Based on the findings of the present study we found identified pollen types belong to the native species as well as cultivated species (agricultural crops and trees) of Prayagraj district. This information may help the beekeeper to conserve plant resources for honey production. The pollen type diversity per honey sample from the southern region of Prayagraj district was richer as compared to the northern region. Shannon–Weaver Diversity Index and Pielou’s Evenness Index for pollen in the honey samples ranged from 1.41 to 2.56 and 0.62 to 0.88, respectively, indicating high plant heterogeneity foraged by the honeybees.