ABSTRACT

The study of diversity of edible insects was carried out during 2021-22 in Joysagar area of Sivasagar District, Assam. The practice of eating in- sects, termed as ‘entomophagy’, has been recorded for a long time. The aim of the study was to record the diversity of edible insects which could be consume as an alternative food source over conventional livestock. With increasing population growth, there is a tremendous rise in demand for protein sources. It has become a worldwide concern to fulfil the needs of all the people. Consequently, severe protein deficiency has been ob- served within humans. So, there is an urgent need for an alternative source for protein rich food. However, the recent development of entomophagy serves as an important tool to reduce the surge of hunger for proteins among an expanding global population as insects are found to be protein rich food which has been analyzed upon repeated number of studies and applying certain quantitative and qualitative experimental researches on insects by countless researchers.

Key words: Diversity, edible insects, entomophagy, Joysagar area