Abstract

<p>This study investigates the composition and relative abundance of insect species inhabiting the ecosystems of Niger Delta University and the surrounding Amassoma community, located in Bayelsa State, Nigeria, over a period of five months from May 15 to October 15, 2020. A total of 7,225 individual insects were collected using five sampling methods: sweep nets, aerial nets, pitfall traps, light traps, and direct collection by hand, across four sites. The collected insects were identified into 8 orders, 24 families, and 32 species. Among the most abundant species, Anopheles (Diptera: Culicidae) represented 58.74% of the total, followed by Dorylus (Diptera: Formicidae), which constituted 26.12%. Six insect species, including *Libellula pulchella* (Odonata: Libellidae), *Danaus plexippus* (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae), and *Spodoptera exampta* (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), had relatively low abundances ranging from 1.24% to 1.68%. Twenty-six families showed even lower species numbers, with *Hypenas cabra* (Erebidae), *Labidomera clivicollis* (Chrysomelidae), and *Coccinnella sp.* (Coccinellidae) being among the least abundant, with populations ranging from 0.043% to 0.05%. The study confirms the rich insect biodiversity within the Niger Delta University and its host community, providing a baseline for future studies on the impact of environmental pollution, particularly from oil activities, on insect species richness in the region.</p>