A Study of Pollinator’s Presence in Fertilizer of Farmlands of Deola Taluka, Maharashtra, India.

Pollinators are essential for sustaining agricultural productivity, yet their presence in fertilizer-intensive farming systems at local scales in India is not well documented. This study presents a field-based observational assessment of pollinator occurrence in agricultural landscapes of Deola Taluka, Nashik district, Maharashtra. Surveys were carried out from June 2024 to April 2025 across six villages, encompassing 60 agricultural fields primarily cultivated with onion, vegetable, and cereal crops. Pollinator occurrence was recorded through direct visual observations, while fertilizer management practices were classified as chemical-dominant, mixed, or organic-dominant. A diverse assemblage of pollinators was observed, with honey bees, carpenter bees, butterflies, stingless bees, and hoverflies recorded most frequently. Pollinator presence showed clear variation among crop types, villages, and fertilizer practices, with higher occurrences noted in onion and vegetable fields as well as in irrigated areas. The results emphasize the role of crop choice, irrigation availability, and balanced fertilizer use in maintaining pollinator presence within semi-arid agricultural systems of Maharashtra.