Research Projects

India is renowned for its diverse flora and fauna, accounting for 7-8% of all recorded species. However, this biodiversity is under threat due to habitat loss and climate change, which affects the survival of many species. The conservation of this large resource is a significant challenge, with much of it unexplored and undocumented. Curculionidae, a large and diverse group of insects, is an important part of this family. Curculionids are polyphagous and feed on all plant parts, attacking leaves, fruits, roots, flowers, seeds, and the stem. They are economically important as they are serious pests of many agricultural, horticultural, and forest plants, causing considerable crop loss. In the current biodiversity crisis, advanced research studies on curculionid weevils in the North-western Himalayan region merit urgent attention. India has conducted poor research on curculionid weevils, but an accurate DNA barcode reference library is missing. The species diversity in the Himalayan region could be much higher than currently recognized due to inaccessible remote areas and lack of local taxonomic research centers. The proposed research proposal, under the Core Research Grant of SERB, aims to study the morphological taxonomy of Curculionidae in the North-western Himalaya, validate the identity of collected weevils using DNA barcoding, and map the spatial distribution of curculionid fauna. This will lead to documentation of the biodiversity of the weevil fauna, their host plants, and distribution pattern, as well as the description of new species and the re-description of poorly studied species.