Diversity, distribution, and cultural significance of Coccinellidae (Ladybirds) in the Dehradun region of Uttarakhand, India

Mir, Shafkat Jabbar; Hassan, Musheerul; Amjad, Muhammad Shoaib; Vitasović-Kosić, Ivana; Jamali, Mohd Majid; Bussmann, Rainer W.

doi:10.3986/hacq-2025-0017

Figures & Tables

Map of the study area and points (red dots) with sampling sites in Dehradun (Uttarakhand, India).Slika 1: Zemljevid raziskovanega območja in točke (rdeče pike) z lokacijami vzorčenja v regiji z Dehradun (Uttarakhand, India).

Different selected habitats: (A) Agricultural areas; (B) Flower gardens; (C) Forests; (D) Mango orchards (Photo: Shafkat Jabbar Mir, 2021).Slika 2: Različni izbrani habitati: (A) kmetijske površine; (B) cvetlični vrtovi; (C) gozdovi; (D) nasadi manga (foto: Shafkat Jabbar Mir, 2021).

The chord diagram reveals the number of documented species classified into different genera from the Dehradun district of Uttarakhand. The complete names of the species are provided in Table 2.Slika 3: Tetivni diagram prikazuje število dokumentiranih vrst, uvrščenih v različne rodove v območju Dehradun (Uttarakhand). Celotna imena vrst so prikazana v Tabeli 2.

Chord diagram showing the identified insect species at different altitudes of Dehradun (Uttarakhand, India). (“N” is number of species). The full names of the species are given in Table 2.Slika 4: Tetivni diagram prikazuje vrste žuželk na različnih nadmorskih višinah v območju Dehradun (Uttarakhand, India). (“N” je število vrst). Celotna imena vrst so prikazana v Tabeli 2.

Chord diagram showing the documented Coccinellids fauna in different habitats. The full names of the species are given in Table 2.Slika 5: Tetivni diagram prikazuje vrste družine Coccinellidae v različnih habitatih. Celotna imena vrst so prikazana v Tabeli 2.

(a) Venn diagram showing the number of unique and common species in different selected habitats (b) Percentage similarity between different habitats based on the occurrence of identified insect species in Dehradun (Uttarakhand, India).Figure 6: (a) Vennov diagram specifičnih in skupnih vrst v različnih izbranih habitatih (b) odstotek podobnosti med različnimi habitati na osnovi pojavljanja vrst žuželk v območju Dehradun (Uttarakhand, Indija).

(a) Chord diagram showing species used in the Gujjar community for a variety of diseases; (b) Chord diagram showing species used in the Pahari community for a variety of diseases. The full names of the species are listed in Table 2.Slika 7: (a) tetivni diagram vrst, ki jih uporabljajo v skupnosti Gujjar za različne bolezni; (b) tetivni diagram vrst, ki jih uporabljajo v skupnosti Pahari za različne bolezni. Celotna imena vrst so prikazana v Tabeli 2.

(a) Chord diagram showing the species used by the ethnic communities (Gujjar, Pahari); (b) Venn diagram showing the number of unique and common species among Gujjar and Pahari in Dehradun (Uttarakhand, India). The complete names of the species are given in Table 2.Slika 8: (a) tetivni diagram vrst, ki jih uporabljajo v etničnih skupnostih (Gujjar, Pahari); (b) Vennov diagram števila specifičnih in skupnih vrst v skupnostih Gujjar in Pahari v območju Dehradun (Uttarakhand, Indija). Celotna imena vrst so prikazana v Tabeli 2.

Species diversity at various selected altitudes of Dehradun (Uttarakhand, India)_Tabela 3: Vrstna pestrost na različnih nadmorskih višinah na območju Dehradun (Uttarakhand, Indija)_

Altitude		300 m	400 m	500 m	600 m	700 m
Individuals		2160	1142	990	291	970
Diversity Indices	Dominance (D)	0.04651	0.05743	0.07067	0.0971	0.1280
	Simpson (1-D)	0.9532	0.9421	0.9290	0.9030	0.8720
	Shannon (H)	3.208	2.976	2.731	2.402	2.124
	Evenness (e^H/S)	0.8531	0.8182	0.8543	0.9245	0.9301
	Margalef (D)	3.641	3.21	2.460	1.930	1.160
	Fisher_alpha (α)	4.731	4.270	3.120	2.502	1.369

Zootherapy and cultural uses of the collected Coccinellidae fauna across the Vann Gujjar and Pahari ethnic groups in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India_ ( Varieties of the species are written in bold)Tabela 2: Zooterapija in kulturna uporaba vzorčene favne družine Coccinellidae v etničnih skupnostih Vann Gujjar in Pahari v območju Dehradun, Uttarakhand, Indija_ ( varietete vrst so napisane krepko)_

Scientific Name	Local name	Abb	Genus	Zootherapy	Cultural Use	Ethnic Groups	Use Value	Use reports
Adalia decempunctata (Linnaeus, 1758)	Gupillu	Ada.dec	Adalia	– – – – –	Be kept in a pot placed in front of patients suffering from an evil spirit disease, and then both are bewitched for some time	Gujjar	0.1	16
Angelis cardoni (Weise, 1990)	Bhundia	Ang.car	Angelis	– – – – –	Black magic	Gujjar	0.1	16
Brumoides suturalis (Fabricius, 1789)	Pillu	Bru.sat	Brumoides	– – – – –	Enchanted and eaten for 40 days to gain magical powers.	Gujjar	0.1	16
Cheilomenes sexmaculata (Fabricius, 1781)	Gudbinia	Che.sex	Cheilomenes	Sundried, made into powder, added to honey and with walnuts, to treat infertility in both males and females.	People also believe that the frequent occurrence of this species in the home garden is a sign of good luck.	Pahari	0.11	17
**Cheilomenes sexmaculata var. undulata (Fabricius, 1781) ^****	Bahv	Che.und	Cheilomenes	Sundried, made into powder, added to honey and with walnuts, to treat infertility in both males and females.	Dried, powdered and applied topically to treat skin diseases, believed to attract the opposite sex.	Gujjar	0.11	17
Chilocorus nigritus (Fabricius, 1798)	Kala Bhundia	Chi.nig	Chilocorus	The whole body is dried and mixed with spider webs to stop bleeding from minor injuries.	This species is made into garlands together with other beetles.	Gujjar	0.11	18
Coccinella hieroglyphica (Linnaeus, 1759)	Kisari	Coc.hie	Coccinella	The whole body is sundried and consumed with honey to treat cough and asthma.	The beetle is dried and burned to produce smoke, which is used against evil spirits.	Gujjar	0.26	41
Coccinella leonine (Fabricius, 1775)	Sursui	Coc.leo	Coccinella	The whole body is dried in the sun and eaten with honey to treat asthma.		Gujjar	0.22	35
Coccinella leonine (Fabricius, 1775)	Sursui	Coc.leo	Coccinella		They are collected and kept overnight in traditional houses to avoid spiders.	Pahari	0.25	39
Coccinella quinquepunctata (Linnaeus, 1785)	Pissu	Coc.qui	Coccinella	The whole body is dried and consumed with lemon and honey to treat infertility.		Gujjar	0.18	28
Coccinella septempunctata (Linnaeus, 1758)	Quleela	Coc.sep	Coccinella	The whole body is dried in the sun and eaten with honey to treat asthma.	These are collected and kept overnight in traditional houses to avoid spiders. Because of their seven tips, locals believe that they have the potential to cure various problems with evil spirits.	Gujjar	0.4	62
**Coccinella septempunctata var. divaricata (Olvier, 1808) ^****	Cheechad	Coc.div	Coccinella	– – – – –	Placed in a pot in front of patients suffering spiritual disease and then enchanted for ome time	Gujjar	0.12	19
Coccinella transversalis (Fabricius, 1781)	Mugari	Coc.tra	Coccinella	Species are dried, made into powder, mixed with turmeric, added with fresh running, and applied on the skin to avoid sunburns.	Considered a friend of local farmers because she hunts pests such as aphids.	Pahari	0.12	19
Coccinella undecimpunctata (Linnaeus, 1758)	Bugi	Coc.axy	Coccinella	Species are dried, made into powder, mixed with turmeric, added with fresh running, and applied on the skin to avoid sunburns.	These are placed on the belly of a pregnant woman, as they are said to produce male children.	Gujjar	0.2	32
Henosepilachna vigintioctopunctata (Fabricius, 1775)	Chotha	Epi.vig	Epilachna	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic	Gujjar	0.1	16
Halmus chalybeus (Boisduval, 1835)	Saamp ki moasi	Hal.cha	Halmus	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic	Gujjar	0.1	16
Halyzia sanscrita (Mulsant, 1846)	Behoor	Hal.san	Halyzia	The whole body is dried and made into a paste by adding egg white and applied topically to treat skin wrinkles.		Gujjar	0.1	16
Harmonia axyridis (Pallas, 1773)	Teetad	Har.axy	Harmonia	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic	Gujjar	0.1	16
Harmonia conformis (Boisduval, 1835)	Patbijena	Har.con	Harmonia	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic	Gujjar	0.1	16
Harmonia dimidiata (Fabricius, 1781)	Doh	Har.dim	Harmonia	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic	Gujjar	0.1	16
Harmonia octomaculata (Fabricius, 1781)	Mokada	Har.oct	Harmonia	– – – – –	Dead specimens are placed in freshwater early in the morning for some time, then the same water is used for bathing to improve spirituality.	Gujjar	0.1	16
Harmonia dimidiata (Fabricius, 1775)	Trak	Hen.vig	Harmonia	– – – – –	Sundried specimens are made in powder and applied on the walls of the home to avoid evil-eye.	Pahari	0.1	16
Hippodamia convergens (Guerin-Meneville, 1842)	Drakcheeda	Hip.con	Hippodamia	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic.	Pahari	0.1	16
Hippodamia variegata (Goeze, 1777)	Dora	Hip.var	Hippodamia	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic.	Pahari	0.1	16
Illeis cincta (Fabricius,1798)	Ghun	Ill.cin	Illeis	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic.	Gujjar	0.1	16
Megalocaria dilatata (Fabricius, 1775)	Bigu	Meg.dil	Megalocaria	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic.	Gujjar	0.1	16
Micraspis discolor (Fabricius, 1798)	Sooree	Mic.dis	Micraspis	The whole insect is dried and mixed with turmeric and the resin from Cedrus deodara (Roxb. ex. D.Don) G.Don to treat wounds.	Used for the practice of black magic.	Gujjar	0.15	23
Micraspis vincta (Gorham, 1895)	Teej	Mis.vin	Micraspis	The whole body is dried and mixed with turmeric and the resin from Cedrus deodara (Roxb. ex. D.Don) G.Don to treat wounds.	Used for the practice of black magic.	Pahari	0.1	16
Micraspis allardi (Mulsant, 1866)	Kalikesari	Mic.all	Micraspis	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic.	Gujjar	0.1	16
Oenopia sauzeti (Mulsant, 1866)	Mirgachda	Oen.sau	Oenopia	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic.	Gujjar	0.1	16
Propylea dissecta (Mulsant, 1846)	Goguu	Pro.dis	Propylaea	The whole in-sects are dried and mixed with turmeric and olive oil to treat sunburns.	Used for the practice of black magic.	Gujjar	0.11	18
Propylea quatuordecimpunctata (Linnaeus, 1758)	Deeraa	Pro.qua	Propylaea	The whole in-sects are dried and mixed with turmeric and olive oil to treat sunburns.	Used for the practice of black magic.	Pahari	0.1	16
Psyllobora bisoctonotata (Mulsant, 1850)	Keedee	Psy.bis	Psyllobora	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic.	Gujjar	0.1	16
Rodolia sexnotata (Muslant, 1850)	Bambeeree	Rod.sex	Rodolia	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic.	Gujjar	0.1	16
Rodolia sp. (Mulsant, 1850)	Beendh	Rod.sp	Rodolia	– – – – –	Used for the practice of black magic.	Gujjar	0.1	16

Demographic data of respondents from the Vann Gujjar and Pahari communities of Dehradun, India_Tabela 1: Demografski podatki intervjuvancev iz skupnosti Vann Gujjar in Pahari iz območja Dehradun (India)_

Demographic features	Total Percentage	Ethnic Communities
Demographic features	Total Percentage	Vann Gujjar	Pahari
Respondents	153	63 (41.17%)	90 (58.82%)
Male	87 (56.86%)	29	58
Female	66 (43.13%)	34	32
Original Language		Gujjari	Pahari
Socio linguistic characteristics		Monolingual (Elder community) Bilingual (Youngest community	Monolingual (Elder community) Bilingual (Youngest community
Age range (27–75)		27–75	27–75
Profession		Sheppard, Housewives	Farmer, Sheppard, Housewives, Craftsmen, Shopkeeper
Livelihood source		Pastoralism	Agriculture

Diversity, distribution, and cultural significance of Coccinellidae (Ladybirds) in the Dehradun region of Uttarakhand, India

Figures & Tables

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Species diversity at various selected altitudes of Dehradun (Uttarakhand, India)_Tabela 3: Vrstna pestrost na različnih nadmorskih višinah na območju Dehradun (Uttarakhand, Indija)_

Demographic data of respondents from the Vann Gujjar and Pahari communities of Dehradun, India_Tabela 1: Demografski podatki intervjuvancev iz skupnosti Vann Gujjar in Pahari iz območja Dehradun (India)_

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