Reproductive behavior of the oil-collecting bee Epicharis dejeanii (Apidae: Centridini)

Abstract

In solitary bees, monandry is common in several species. Post-copulation strategies exerted by males to prevent females from mating with other males are known and vary between species. We studied a population of Epicharis dejeanii (Centridini) analyzing the reproductive aspects. The average mating time and the behavior of the couples were observed. Males performed synchronized movements of the legs and antennae in addition to vibrations that generated a loud sound. The females remained static, starting movements with their legs to finish the mating after approximately 50 s. During the mating, the females' sting was kept exposed. The males inserted the aedeagus into the female's genital opening but kept out the genitalia. The male's post-copulatory behavior seems to be performed simultaneously during mating. mating behavior / monandry / post copulation / solitary bees

Mating behaviour of the large-head resin bee Heriades truncorum (Megachilidae: Osminii) suggests female plastic strategy in selection of a mating partner and male quality assessment

“…Male thoracic vibration during mating has been recorded to several species (Simmons et al 2000;Russell et al 2018;Chiappa and Mandujano 2020;Dec and Vivallo 2021) including other Megachilidae such as Osmia spp. (Conrad et al 2010) and Megachile species (Sihag 1986).…”

“…Males that engage in mating attempt while other males were attached to the female succeed in separating the mating pair. Due to absence of size effect during male interference and lack of aggressive behaviour between males as observed in Epicharis dejeanni (Dec and Vivallo 2021), it is more likely that female choice has a stronger effect over selection of a mating partner than in male-male competition. However, it is worth mentioning that experimentally, I did not explore how mating interference occurs among males of extreme body sizes since the frequency of intermediate size males is greater compared to the extreme sizes.…”