Night and Early Morning Flying Insects in a Residence Backyard in Doha City, Qatar

Abstract

Night and early morning flying insects in Doha were recorded daily, for a complete year, using a light-water trap. Two peaks of insect numbers occurred in April-May and September-October periods respectively. The lowest numbers were collected in January and August. The number of species did not show any significant fluctuations. It is most probable that ambient temperature was the main determining factor in the development and dispersal of these insects. The collected insect fauna comprised seven insect orders, with the orders; Hemiptera, Coleoptera, Diptera, and Hymenoptera being the most dominant. Insects belonging to the dipteran family Chironomidae, the hemipteran Cicadellidae, the hymenopteran Formicidae and the Coleopteran Staphalinidae were of high occurrence.The types encountered were assemblages of small insects, generally posing no harm to humans or domestic animals. However, some are ecologically beneficial as pollinators or constituents of natural food chains.