ABSTRACT. Diversity of Euglossinae (Hymenoptera, Apidae) in two Atlantic Forest fragments located in lhe urban area of João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazi\. The use 01' fragrances lO allracl males 01' Euglossillae bees has been an imporlanl 1001 10 increase lhe knowledge of lhe group. In lhe Norlheaslern of Brazil, sludies on euglossine bees are slill ullcommoll, mainly in urban areas. The goals Oflhis sludy are lO idenlifY lhe Euglossinae species composilion, lo know lhe diversily and lhe communily slructure of Euglossinae species, verifY their preterences for differenl fragrances and evaluale lhe phenology 01' lhese species, in lwo Allanlic Foresl fragmenls of lhe city 01' João Pessoa, Paraiba slate, Brazil. Bees were sampled aI 15 days intervals, over lhe course of one year, from 8:00 lo 17:00 hours, lhrough the use of traps bailed with seven types of fragrances. In bolh areas, 1082 individuais belongillg lo nine species were sampled. None significanl difference 01' diversily and relalive abundanceofbees bel\Veen fragmenls \Vere observed. Eucalyptol was the mosl allraclivc fragrance. Bees were more abundanl belWeen 8:00 and 9:00 AM. Visits lo lhe fragrances were more frequenl ti'om the middle 01' dry season to lhe beginning of lhe rainy season and positively correlated wilh lhe mOllthly mean lemperalure. MOSl species 01' bees visited ali lhe bails over the year. bul lhe nllmber 01' atlracted males was highest in April.

ABSTRACT. Trap-nesting solitary bees and wasps (Hymenoptera) in Guaribas Biological Reserve (Mamanguape, Paraíba, Brasil). The trap-nesting bees of Guaribas Biological Reserve were studied during one year. Three areas with different vegetation types were sampled, open savanas, c10sed forest, and a mosaic of these two types. Twelve species oftrap-nesting bees were observed, four ofwhich are parasites. The most abundant species were Centris tarsata (Smith, 1879), C. analis (Fabricius, 1804), Tetrapedia diversipes Klug, 1810, and Mesocheira bicolor (Fabricius, 1804). Nesting of Centris tarsata and Mesocheira bicolor occurred mainly during the dry season, while Centris analis and Tetrapedia diversipes did not show any seasonaI preferences. Mesocheira bicolor occurred only in the nests of C. tarsata, parasitizing more than 50% of the nests and representing 23.2% of the individuais emerged in the host nests. The mosaic area yielded a greater abundance and diversity. Comparing the sampling methods of trap-nests and entomological nets, conducted simultaneously in the sarne area, in relation to diversity of trap nesting bees, it was observed a great similarity in terms of composition and differences of abundance in species sampled. Some hypothesis are discussed to explain a reason for the greater diversity and abundance of the mosaic area in relation to the other areas.

No abstract

Habitat degradation and climate change are currently threatening wild pollinators, compromising their ability to provide pollination services to wild and cultivated plants. Landscape genomics offers powerful tools to assess the influence of landscape modifications on genetic diversity and functional connectivity, and to identify adaptations to local environmental conditions that could facilitate future bee survival. Here, we assessed range‐wide patterns of genetic structure, genetic diversity, gene flow, and local adaptation in the stingless bee Melipona subnitida, a tropical pollinator of key biological and economic importance inhabiting one of the driest and hottest regions of South America. Our results reveal four genetic clusters across the species’ full distribution range. All populations were found to be under a mutation–drift equilibrium, and genetic diversity was not influenced by the amount of reminiscent natural habitats. However, genetic relatedness was spatially autocorrelated and isolation by landscape resistance explained range‐wide relatedness patterns better than isolation by geographic distance, contradicting earlier findings for stingless bees. Specifically, gene flow was enhanced by increased thermal stability, higher forest cover, lower elevations, and less corrugated terrains. Finally, we detected genomic signatures of adaptation to temperature, precipitation, and forest cover, spatially distributed in latitudinal and altitudinal patterns. Taken together, our findings shed important light on the life history of M. subnitida and highlight the role of regions with large thermal fluctuations, deforested areas, and mountain ranges as dispersal barriers. Conservation actions such as restricting long‐distance colony transportation, preserving local adaptations, and improving the connectivity between highlands and lowlands are likely to assure future pollination services.

The invasion of generalist Africanized honey bees may change certain plant-pollinator interactions. We evaluated the preemption by honey bees and the exploitative competition with native bees on a tree with nocturnally dehiscent small flowers. Our main objectives were to quantify pollen production and harvesting, to verify whether honey bees exploitatively compete with native bees and to identify the effective pollinators of Spondias mombin. The nocturnally dehiscent flowers were pollen depleted by honey bees and attracted various nocturnal and diurnal bee species. A threefold increase in native bee abundance was produced by delaying pollen availability and by preventing the preemption of pollen by honey bees. The results suggest that honey bees reduce the foraging benefit of late-arriving native bees. Honey bees and Scaptotrigona aff. tubiba were regarded as the main effective pollinators of S. mombin due to their abundance, behavior, and ability to visit a large number of flowers.

No abstract

O estudo realizou-se em três áreas da Reserva Biológica Guaribas, uma área com vegetação característica de Mata Atlântica, outra com vegetação característica de Tabuleiro Nordestino e a terceira, chamada de Transição, formada por um mosaico dos dois tipos vegetacionais. Foram coletados 2314 indivíduos pertencentes a 11 espécies de Euglossina. Utilizou-se como iscas seis fragrâncias artificiais: eugenol, eucaliptol, escatol, beta ionona, acetato de benzila e vanilina. Na área de Mata, foram coletados 850 indivíduos de 11 espécies, na área de Tabuleiro 737 indivíduos de cinco espécies e na área de Transição 727 indivíduos de seis espécies. A área de Mata apresentou a maior diversidade (H' = 0,94) e a maior riqueza. O coeficiente de similaridade binário de Sørensen indicou que as áreas mais semelhantes, com relação à composição das espécies, foram às de Tabuleiro e Transição (Ss = 0,92). O coeficiente de similaridade de Morisita apontou que as áreas de Mata e Transição são idênticas (Cmh = 1), com relação às abundâncias relativas das espécies. A área de Transição assemelha-se mais à área de Tabuleiro (quanto à composição e diversidade) e mais à área de Mata (quanto à abundância relativa), o que sugere que algumas espécies de Mata também forrageiam na área de Transição.

In the semiarid region of Northeastern Brazil, populations of native bees can be jeopardized by future climate change. The present study aims to analyze the impact of climate change on a native stingless bee (Melipona subnitida Ducke). This species is a locally important pollinator of wild and crop plants, also exploited for honey production by regional beekeepers. Using species distributional modeling, we assessed the effects of climate change on the geographic distribution of M. subnitida . We found a potential shift in future areas where species can find climatically suitable habitats toward the edges of the current pollinator distribution with a consequent central disconnection, which can threaten species dispersal and gene flow. We propose to reconnect the remaining suitable areas through conservation and restoration programs based on the distribution of the plant species that are used by this bee as source of pollen and nectar and propose also, other strategies that aim to increase the welfare of local people conservation / economy / landscape ecology / Melipona subnitida / pollination / restoration / sustainability