Biodiversity of Insecta in Amazonia: Updating the geographic records of social wasps (Vespidae: Polistinae) in Acre and Rondônia States, Brazil

Abstract

The Acre and Rondônia states in Brazil are part of Western Amazon rainforest in Brazil, an area harboring high biodiversity and high degree of endemisms Nevertheless, there are few studies on diversity of social wasps occurring in both states. This study presents a list of social wasps (Vespidae: Polistinae) collected using three modified Malaise traps model: Townes, Gressit and Gressit, and suspended traps in two localities in Acre and two in Rondônia state. A total of 60 species were collected, 20 of these species are new distribution records to Acre state and 54 species, 15 of these species are new distribution records to Rondônia state. Some species are not commonly found in the collections and lists of species, and some are recorded for the first or second time to Brazil or the Amazon region. Now there are 114 species (19 genera) for Acre and 116 species (19 genera) for Rondônia. This increase may be an indication that the Polistinae richness is probably higher in the regions studied and that Acre and Rondônia may well contain a number of additional (as yet unrecorded) social wasp species. He we present an updated about the geographic records of social wasps’ fauna in both states.