ESTUDOS DE INTERAÇÃO INSETO-PLANTA NO CERRADO: UMA ANÁLISE DA LITERATURA

Abstract

The Cerrado, representing 24% of Brazilian territory, is the second largest biome in the country, and faces challenges of habitat loss due to agricultural activities, despite its rich biodiversity. Interactions between insects and plants, such as pollination, ant-plant-herbivore interactions, especially herbivores, are common in the Cerrado, with plants developing defense mechanisms against insects. This study aimed to analyze these interactions, conducting a bibliographic survey using the Web of Science database. Without using a temporal filter, articles were obtained from 1995 to 2023, and general data from the articles were collected, including year, authors, institution, location and type of interaction. A total of 155 articles were obtained, 12 of which did not meet the inclusion criteria, having a positive trend line in relation to the number of publications per year, and a large part of the articles published involving the areas of “Entomology” and “ Environmental Sciences and Ecology”. Most of the work was developed by members of three universities, with these affiliations coinciding with the states, but often involving studies, with Minas Gerais showing a greater predominance of studies. A total of 40 families of insects interacting with plants were found in detailed articles and the interactions with the greatest recurrence were herbivores and interactions between ants, plants and herbivores, with a focus on Hymenoptera and Lepidoptera. Herbivory, especially involving galling insects, was the most prevalent type of interaction. Among the plant groups, the Fabaceae family has been widely explored, as it is the largest in species diversity in the Cerrado. The results offered a comprehensive overview and emphasized the ongoing need to understand the complex interactions in the Cerrado ecosystem.