Explore the vast range of titles available.

Animal-microbe symbioses are often stable for millions of years. An example is the clade consisting of social corbiculate bees—honeybees, bumblebees, and stingless bees—in which a shared ancestor acquired specialized gut bacteria that subsequently diversified with hosts. This model may be incomplete, however, as few microbiomes have been characterized for stingless bees, which are diverse and ecologically dominant pollinators in the tropics. We surveyed gut microbiomes of Brazilian stingless bees, focusing on the genus Melipona , for which we sampled multiple species and biomes. Strikingly, Melipona lacks Snodgrassella and Gilliamella , bacterial symbionts ubiquitous in other social corbiculate bees. Instead, Melipona species harbor more environmental bacteria and bee-specific Starmerella yeasts. Loss of Snodgrassella and Gilliamella may stem from ecological shifts in Melipona or the acquisition of new symbionts as functional replacements. Our findings demonstrate the value of broadly sampling microbiome biodiversity and show that even ancient symbioses can be lost.

The genus Polistomorpha (Hymenoptera: Leucospidae) is exclusive to the Neotropical region, comprising seven species. Polistomorpha fasciata has previously been recorded in the Brazilian states of Amapá, Amazonas, Pará, and São Paulo. This study presents the first record of P. fasciata from Northeast Brazil, parasitizing Euglossa cordata within a Restinga ecosystem. Additionally, it provides an extended diagnosis and illustrations of P. fasciata, E. cordata, and its nest. El género Polistomorpha (Hymenoptera: Leucospidae) es exclusivo de la región neotropical, con siete especies, seis de ellas en Brasil. Polistomorpha fasciata se registró anteriormente en Amapá, Amazonas, São Paulo y Pará. Este estudio proporciona el primer registro de P. fasciata en el Noreste de Brasil, parasitando a Euglossa cordata en un ecosistema de Restinga. También incluye un diagnóstico ampliado e ilustraciones de P. fasciata, E. cordata y su nido.

Orchid bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Euglossini) are a diverse and important group of Neotropical pollinators. Numerous chemicals have been used in sampling orchid bees, and species-specific attraction, particularly of males, to these chemicals is well known. However, there have been few studies that have quantified differences in the species composition of orchid bees attracted to particular chemicals. In this study, we compared the abundance and species composition of orchid bees collected with 4 commonly used attractants: benzyl acetate, eucalyptol (or cineole), eugenol, and methyl salicylate. Eucalyptol collected the greatest abundance and species richness of orchid bees. Indicator species analysis revealed that 3 species, Euglossa imperialis Cockerell, Euglossa obtusa Dressler, and Eufriesea mexicana (Mocsary), were significantly associated with eucalyptol, and 1, Eulaema marcii Nemesio, with benzyl acetate. The multi-response permutation procedure revealed relatively large differences in species composition of orchid bees collected with eucalyptol vs. benzyl acetate and eucalyptol vs. eugenol. Our results showed that eucalyptol and benzyl acetate were the most effective and complimentary attractants, but even less effective attractants such as eugenol may attract novel species.

Stingless bees (Apidae: Meliponini) are of great biological, economic, and culturally important group. In Colombia, species such as those of the favosa group of the genus Melipona with three species reported for the country especially stand out. However, these species have been traditionally differentiated based on the coloration of the integument, which is a highly variable character in individuals of the same species. On the other hand, the characters of the associated sterna, which are of taxonomic importance in the group, have never been reviewed. In this research, we studied the species of the favosa species group known for Colombia. We reviewed 377 individuals of the favosa group from different biogeographic regions where individuals have been reported, and we also reviewed the characters associated to coloration of the integument and the male terminalia of the specimens examined. Our results indicated that the characters of coloration traditionally used to separate the species were not consistent; we observed high variation even in individuals from the same nest. We also found that the sterna of males from different biogeographic regions did not differ from each other; however, they did differ from the sterna of M. orbignyi from Argentina and thus, bear characters of taxonomic importance for the group. These results indicate that the favosa group in Colombia is represented by a single species, Melipona favosa. Las abejas sin aguijón (Apidae: Meliponini) son un grupo de gran importancia biológica, económica y cultural. En Colombia destacan especies como las del grupo favosa del género Melipona con tres especies reportadas para el país. Sin embargo, las especies de este grupo han sido tradicionalmente diferenciadas a partir de la coloración del integumento, carácter altamente variable individuos de una misma especie. Por otro lado, los caracteres de los esternos asociados, los cuales son de importancia taxonómica en el grupo, nunca han sido revisados. En este trabajo se estudiaron las especies del grupo favosa presentes en Colombia, se revisaron 377 individuos del grupo favosa de las distintas regiones biogeográficas donde el grupo ha sido reportado, de igual forma, también se revisaron los caracteres asociados a la coloración del integumento y de la terminalia masculina de los ejemplares examinados. Nuestros resultados indican que los caracteres de coloración tradicionalmente utilizados para separar las especies no fueron consistentes y presentaron una alta variación inclusive en individuos de un mismo nido. También se encontró que los esternos de los machos provenientes de las distintas regiones biogeográficas no presentaban diferencias entre sí, sin embargo, estos si difieren de los esternos de M. orbignyi de Argentina, teniendo caracteres de importancia taxonómica para el grupo. Estos resultados indican que el grupo favosa en Colombia se encuentra representado por una única especie, Melipona favosa.

In this study, we report the complete mitochondrial genomes (mtgenome) of Thyreus decorus, Ceratina okinawana and Amegilla calceifera, which are the first time of mtgenome report also for the genera Thyreus, Ceratina and Amegilla in the family Apidae. They contain 15,237, 15,207, and 17,728 bp, with AT content of 84.97%, 79.30%, and 84.63%, respectively. Each mtgenome includes 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 22 transfer RNA (tRNAs), two ribosomal RNA (16S and 12S rRNA) and an AT-rich control region (CR). The phylogenetic relationships of 45 species in the family were constructed using Bayesian Inference based on concatenated nucleotide sequences of 13 PCGs. Our study suggests that the subfamily Apinae is a paraphyletic group, with the genus Eucera claded into the subfamily Xylocopinae and the genera Amegilla and Thyreus into the subfamily Nomadinae. In Apinae, the genera Melipona and Bombus are significantly sister group, and the genus Apis is the sister group with Melipona + Bombus.

Taxonomic notes on the genus Elaphropoda Lieftinck, 1966 (Hymenoptera: Apidae) from Vietnam are presented. Two species of the genus are reported: Elaphropoda percarinata (Cockerell, 1930) was first recorded from Vietnam based on specimens collected from Ha Tinh province in 1998, and is reconfirmed with a specimens collected from Bac Kan province in the Northeastern part of the country in this study, and Elaphropoda khasiana (Schulz, 1906) is recorded from Vietnam for the first time. Redescriptions of the male of E. percarinata and the female of E. khasiana are given with illustrations.

While fossils of honey bees (Apini: Apis Linnaeus) are comparatively abundant in European Oligocene and Miocene deposits, the available material from Asia is scant and represented by only a handful of localities. It is therefore significant to report a new deposit with a fossil honey bee from southern China. Apis (Synapis) dalica Engel & Wappler, sp. n. , is described and figured from Middle Miocene sediments of Maguan County, southeastern Yunnan Province, China. This is the first fossil bee from the Cenozoic of southern China, and is distinguished from its close congeners present at the slightly older locality of Shanwang, Shandong in northeastern China. The species can be distinguished on the basis of wing venation differences from other Miocene Apis .

Recently, it has been proposed that the one of the main determinants of complex societies in Hymenoptera is colony size, since the existence of large colonies reduces the direct reproductive success of an average individual, given a decreased chance of being part of the reproductive caste. In this study, we evaluate colony size evolution in corbiculate bees and their relationship with the sociality level shown by these bees. Specifically i) the correlation between colony size and level of sociality considering the phylogenetic relationship to evaluate a general evolutionary tendency, and ii) the hypothetical ancestral forms of several clades within a phylogeny of corbiculate bees, to address idiosyncratic process occurring at important nodes. We found that the level of social complexity in corbiculate bees is phylogenetically correlated with colony size. Additionally, another process is invoked to propose why colony size evolved concurrently with the level of social complexity. The study of this trait improves the understanding of the evolutionary transition from simple to complex societies, and highlights the importance of explicit probabilistic models to test the evolution of other important characters involved in the origin of eusociality.

Las abejas sin aguijón (Apidae: Apinae: Meliponini) procesan la miel en vasijas de cerumen, por lo que se denomina miel de pote. Casi 600 especies de abejas sin aguijón producen miel tropical. A pesar de que la Comisión del Codex Alimentarius descuidó la regulación internacional de este relevante producto de meliponinos, las normas locales y nacionales están creciendo desde el año 2014. Además del mayor contenido de agua y de acidez libre, un descubrimiento reciente del azúcar trehalulosa en la miel de pote es un rasgo distintivo adicional. La gran biodiversidad entomológica tiene un impacto en la composición química y la bioactividad de la miel, asi como el origen botánico que ha sido menos estudiado debido a la gran cantidad de especies de abejas sin aguijón en comparación con la única Apis mellifera. Se realizó una revisión bibliométrica (1962-2022) para analizar la evolución de la literatura científica sobre miel de abejas sin aguijón, los autores prolíficos, las instituciones más activas, los países más productivos, las principales revistas utilizadas para difundir la investigación sobre la miel de abejas sin aguijón, identificar mapas temáticos y sus conexiones con las disciplinas científicas utilizando la base de datos Scopus y el software bibliometrix. Se describió la estructura taxonómica de esta revisión bibliométrica. En estas seis décadas, se destacó una autora venezolana, la Universidad de Los Andes fue la tercera institución con mayor número de publicaciones y Venezuela ocupó el sexto lugar como país más productivo luego de Brasil, Malasia, México, Estados Unidos e Indonesia. Se visualizó una nube de palabras, mapa de árbol, dendrograma y mapa conceptual. Se mapeó la red de las fuentes y la evolución de las palabras claves del autor por VOSviewer. Esta revisión fue el primer análisis integral de mapeo científico en miel de abejas sin aguijón.

Foraging specialization allows social insects to more efficiently exploit resources in their environment. Recent research on honeybees suggests that specialization on pollen or nectar among foragers is linked to reproductive physiology and sensory tuning (the Reproductive Ground-Plan Hypothesis; RGPH). However, our understanding of the underlying physiological relationships in non- Apis bees is still limited. Here we show that the bumblebee Bombus terrestris has specialist pollen and nectar foragers, and test whether foraging specialization in B. terrestris is linked to reproductive physiology, measured as ovarian activation. We show that neither ovary size, sensory sensitivity, measured through proboscis extension response (PER), or whole-body lipid stores differed between pollen foragers, nectar foragers, or generalist foragers. Body size also did not differ between any of these three forager groups. Non-foragers had significantly larger ovaries than foragers. This suggests that potentially reproductive individuals avoid foraging.