Melipona scutellaris (Apidae, Meliponini) is one of the main species of stingless bees used in beekeeping in the Northeast of Brazil. We examined the honey from M. scutellaris as an indicator to evaluate the levels of metals at sampling sites subject to a broad spectrum of environmental pollutants. The collections were carried out in the urban-industrial area of Salvador, Bahia and the metropolitan region. Samples (n= 58) were submitted to the nitroperchloric digestion procedure. We used the inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry technique (ICP OES) to determine the concentration of metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb and Zn) in the samples. The studied metals were detected among the samples, which presented tolerable levels according to current Brazilian legislation and recommendations from the World Health Organization (WHO), except for Cr, which presented mean values higher than the threshold for all sampling sites. The detection of the analyzed metals indicates that the honey of M. scutellaris is a useful tool to evaluate the presence of environmental contaminants; therefore, it can be considered a good indicator of environmental contamination for monitoring a particular region and preventing issues due to the release of metals into the environment.

Pollen in honey reflects its botanical origin and melissopalynology is used to identify origin, type, and quantities of pollen grains of the botanical species visited by bees. This study aimed to identify the pollen spectrum of honeys from Apis mellifera and stingless bees produced in the semi-arid region of Bahia, Brazil. We analysed 78 honey samples, which were submitted to the acetolysis process for identification and quantification of pollen types. Fabaceae, Asteraceae and Euphorbiaceae were the most predominant families in pollen types. For Fabaceae, the most representative pollen types were Chamaecrista 1, Mimosa caesalpiniifolia, Mimosa pudica, Mimosa tenuiflora, Prosopis and Senna. The results indicate that the flora explored by the bees to collect nectar is diverse in the semi-arid region of Bahia and the honeys analysed were classified as multifloral.

The floristic composition of an environment is important to ensure the trophic niche of bee species. Melipona scutellaris Latreille, is a typical stingless bee of Atlantic rainforest sites in northeastern Brazil, a region widely established in meliponaries for honey and pollen production. M. scutellaris is reared (meliponiculture) in rural and urban areas, where the species depends on the availability of different plants for nectar and pollen collection. In this study, we estimated food niche width, equitativity, and similarity between different colonies of M. scutellaris in highly urbanized and industrialized sites of the Metropolitan Region of Salvador, Bahia State, Brazil. We analyzed pollen spectrum of 58 honey samples from six meliponaries, during 12 months. We identified 111 pollen types distributed in 28 plant families. The Fabaceae family showed the highest diversity in pollen types (33.33% of the total) and Mimosa caesalpiniifolia was the most frequent pollen type, found in 100% of the samples. M. scutellaris concentrated its foraging activity on a few trophic resources (H’ = 2.69 and J’ = 0.01) indicating a few melittophilous plant species belonging to the genera Eucalyptus, Mimosa, Protium, Serjania and Tapirira, should be managed on a regional scale to favor meliponiculture with this native bee species.

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Melipona scutellaris Latreille, 1811 is of economic importance for local beekeepers, besides its relevance in the pollination of native plant species of the Brazilian Atlantic forest. Currently, data on the use of floral resources by Meliponini colonies are scarce, particularly in urban environments. We evaluated the botanical origin, the microbiological and physicochemical characteristics of pollen stored by M. scutellaris in colonies in an urban environment. The samples (n ¼ 44) were obtained from the metropolitan region of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, a region of intense urban and industrial activities. We identified 52 pollen types belonging to 21 botanical families. The botanical families Fabaceae, Myrtaceae, and Anacardiaceae represented most pollen types. Aerobic psychrotrophic bacteria, Bacillus spp., molds and yeasts, fecal coliforms, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, sulfite-reducing Clostridium, and Salmonella spp. were not found in the samples. We identified and quantified fatty acids with carbon numbers varying from C4 to C20. For the physicochemical parameters, the following variations were verified: moisture (47.3% to 55.70%), ash (3.45% to 5.90%), protein (10.19 to 24.02%), pH (3.28 to 3.99), acidity (237.20 to 557.10 meq/kg), lipids (2.43 to 7.94%), carbohydrates (10.85 to 28.89%) and total energy value (170.60 to 216.99 kcal/100g). Pollen stored ("sambur a") by bees is a complete food and a source of nutrients with therapeutic potential. Pollen stored by M. scutellaris consists of a heterofloral pollen with physicochemical and microbiological qualities, considered safe for human consumption. Moreover, it contains linoleic and linolenic essential fatty acids making it a potential nutraceutical product.

Este estudo objetiva caracterizar morfologicamente grãos de pólen da família Passifloraceae, ocorrentes na Área de Proteção Ambiental (APA) Serra Branca/Raso da Catarina, Jeremoabo, Bahia, Brasil, visando complementar o levantamento palinológico e taxonômico realizado na área, bem como fornecer subsídios para o desenvolvimento do plano de manejo da APA Serra Branca/Raso da Catarina. Os botões florais foram coletados de material herborizado, depositado no Herbário HUNEB – Coleção Paulo Afonso. O material polinífero foi acetolisado, mensurado e descrito sob microscopia óptica e eletrônica de varredura (MEV). A família Passifloraceae está representada na Ecorregião Raso da Catarina por quatro espécies pertencentes ao gênero Passiflora: P. cincinnata Mast., P. foetida L. P. luetzelburgii Harms e P.  setacea DC. Todas as espécies apresentaram grãos de pólen grandes, 6-sincolpados, aberturas aos pares, com três pontopérculos e três pseudopérculos, exina reticulada com a presença de báculos ou grânulos no interior dos grandes retículos sinuosos. Os resultados obtidos mostraram uma uniformidade morfopolínica caracterizando o gênero Passiflora na área de estudo como estenopolínico.

Transportation to long distances and handling of colonies can affect development and survival conditions of bees. Our study investigated the stress intensity of individuals of Melipona scutellaris Latreille, 1811, due to transportation of colonies to long distances, within the natural range of the species. We used 746 bee workers. The right and left forewings were removed and measured using 15 landmarks in vein insertions. Individuals were divided into four groups: (1) workers collected at the origin site, (2) workers emerged at the place of destination in pupal stage during transportation, (3) workers emerged at the destination site in the 3rd instar of larval stage during transportation, and (4) workers collected after three months of colony establishment at the destination site. The Procrustes ANOVA showed significant results as well as the presence of Fluctuating Asymmetry (FA) in all treatments for the shape of wings (P<0.01). However, in the comparison of groups using the One-Way ANOVA, only workers that emerged at the destination site in the 3rd instar of larval stage during transportation (Group 3) significantly differentiated (P<0.05) from the others, with a higher FA index. The larval stage underwent more stress due to colony transportation. Beekeepers should take good care of colonies during transportation in order to minimize damages to workers to prevent quality loss of services and products offered by bees.