Diversity of Spiders (Arachnida: Araneae) Recorded in Khasi Mandarin Ecosystem of Northeastern India

Background: Spiders are one of the most abundant predatory groups found in the Citrus orchards. They feed on insects as well as other arthropod pests. Keeping in view of their important role in the natural biological control, the current study was carried out to study the spider fauna of the Khasi Mandarin (Citrus reticulata) ecosystem present in the Northeastern parts of India. Methods: The field surveys were carried out during 2016-21 in the seven Northeastern states, namely, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura. The different localities were selected based on the pre dominance of Khasi Mandarin cultivation and the different geographical and climatic conditions. Result: During the course of the survey, spiders belonging to 19 species, 16 genus and 8 different families were recorded from the study areas. The predominant families were Salticidae (36.84%) and Araneidae (26.31%) along with the reported presence of Oxyopidae (10.52%), Hersiliidae (5.2%), Heteropodidae (5.2%), Pisauridae (5.2%), Tetragnathidae (5.2%) and Thomisidae (5.2%). The highest and least population of spiders belonged to the species, Oxyopes birmanicus Thorell (Family: Oxyopidae) and Neoscona spp. (Family: Araneidae) respectively. The rich faunal diversity of spiders found during the present investigation indicate that spiders could be utilized as potential biocontol agents in the management of Khasi Mandarin pest complex.