Insects complex associated with the tropical basil, Ocimum gratissimum L. (Lamiaceae) in southern Benin.

Tropical basil is an aromatic leafy vegetable used for its medicinal and therapeutic properties in
numerous countries in West Africa (Benin, Nigeria, Togo, etc.). In Benin, it is produced on almost all
urban and periurban garden throughout the year for fresh market. Until now there are few or nearly
no publications about the arthropod community of this specie, even less in the context of Benin.
Thus, to assess this community, basil plots were mowed using a sweep net in three localities (Ouidah,
Togba and Sèmè) of southern Benin.
Preliminary results focus on the different insect families that colonized tropical basil in southern
Benin environmental conditions. These include: Aphididae (Homoptera), Cercopidae (Homoptera),
Chrysomelidae (Coleoptera), Coccinelledidea (Coleoptera), Meloidae (Coleoptera), Braconidae
(Hymenoptera), Ichneumonidae (Hymenoptera), Formicidae (Hymenoptera), Vespidae
(Hymenoptera), Apoidae (Hymenoptera), Reduviidae (Heteroptera), Pentatomidae (Heteroptera),
Pyrgomorphidae (Orthoptera), Acrididae (Orthoptera), Syrphidae (Diptera), Diopsidae (Diptera).
Among these families, there are pests: Aphis gossypii G. (Homoptera: Aphididae), Zonocerus
variegatus L. (Orthoptera: Pyrgomorphidae), etc.; predators: Ischiodon aegyptius W. (Diptera:
Syrphidae), Cheilomenes spp. (Coleoptera: Coccinelledidea), Rhynocoris spp. (Heteroptera:
Reduviidae), etc.; parasitoids and pollinators.
From this study, it appeared that there is a large diversity of families and functional groups (pests,
predators, parasitoids and pollinators) associated with tropical basil . Moreover, the presence of
natural enemies could be an advantage for farmers in intercropping systems. This would help reduce
the use of synthetic insecticides.
This result, which is a first knowledge of the insect fauna associated with tropical basil under the
environmental conditions of Southern Benin, will be supplemented by a spatio temporal study to
assess the variability and the dynamics of this insect fauna.