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Se reune la información sobre las abejas sin aguijón de México, las especies y su uso en la meliponicultura
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« What do you think about the impact of HONEY on the treatment of the viral diseases? »
This question naturally arises in regard with the current worldwide situation and urgent need of the effective anti-viral compounds (https://www.ft.com/content/a26fbf7e-48f8-11ea-aeb3-955839e06441)....
Stingless beekeeping had long been neglected overall, and in areas like Yucatán, traditional
meliponiculture has been on the verge of extinction. However, since the start of the twentyfirst century, stingless bees and meliponiculture have gained much more positive public profile. Presently, Meliponiculture has gained widespread popularity and is no...
Many organisms consume honeydew to meet their energy requirements. Some species of stingless bees also consume honeydew secreted by hemipterans. In this study we describe the ecological relationships among stingless bees, ants, and the whitefly [Aleurothrixus aepim (Goeldi)]. In order to do so, we made 30-min observations twice a day, carried out o...
Fusarium poae and Fusarium chlamydosporum are mycotoxin generators, and the reason for root and stem rotting of agriculturally important plants; making them a major global problem. Tetragonisca angustula, a native stingless bee, produces kinds of honey with antifungal and antibacterial activity. In this study, the inhibitory effect of lactic bacter...
Citations
... Typically, natural habitats such as tropical forests are crucial for stingless bees, not only for providing floral resources (i.e., pollen and nectar) but also for supplying other resources such as resin (Kaluza et al. 2017;Requier & Leonhardt 2020), and nesting habitats (Eltz et al. 2003). Stingless bees primarily rely on large and hollow trees, ground cavities, or cliffs for nesting (Eltz et al. 2003;Kwapong et al. 2010;Roubik 2006Roubik , 2023Tornyie & Kwapong 2015). This dependency on forest habitat could explain why several stingless bee species respond negatively to anthropogenic land-use changes (Brosi 2009;Lichtenberg et al. 2017;Wayo et al. 2020) and are associated with larger forest fragments and greater proportions of surrounding forest (Brosi et al. 2008;Wayo et al. 2020). ...
... Consequently, forests are considered core habitats and serve as sources of stingless bees and other native pollinators to surrounding areas. However, some stingless bee species can utilize man-made structures for nesting, such as cracks in walls, stairs, and windows (Kwapong et al. 2010;Vieira et al. 2016). Previous studies have also shown that some species can persist and forage in human-modified landscapes such as agricultural lands (Sritongchuay et al. 2019(Sritongchuay et al. , 2022Wayo et al. 2020Wayo et al. , 2024 and urbanized areas (Kaluza et al. 2016;Stewart et al. 2018;Stewart & Waitayachart 2020;Wayo et al. 2024). ...
Stingless bees are key pollinators of both wild plants and crops in tropical Asia and are exploited for honey production and pollination services. Despite their importance, little is known about their habitat preferences in anthropogenic landscapes. We aimed to identify critical environmental variables influencing the distribution of six genera of Asian stingless bees as well as the overall stingless bee community, to identify suitable and core anthropogenic habitats, and to identify priority habitats for conservation in Thailand. We adopted a range of modeling approaches to estimate habitat suitability based on key environmental variables such as landscape features, climate, topography, and vegetation. Our results indicate that the habitat suitability for stingless bee community is strongly influenced by landscape factors including distance to nearest forest, proportions of paddy fields, forest, field crops, and villages. Among the six genera studied, Tetragonula showed the largest areas of suitable anthropogenic habitats. This may be because Tetragonula is the most diverse and widespread of all Old World stingless bees. For the overall stingless bee community, suitable anthropogenic habitats (defined as areas with a probability of occurrence > 0.195, with this threshold determined by maximizing the sum of sensitivity and specificity), and core anthropogenic habitats (defined as areas with a probability of occurrence > 0.9), accounted for 19.06% and 0.09% of the country’s area, respectively. Approximately 2% of the country’s land are considered high-priority habitats that are suitable for at least 4 genera of stingless bees (defined as areas with a probability of occurrences > 0.5) across human-modified landscapes. However, since this study could not distinguish between wild and managed populations, the findings likely reflect both the ability of stingless bees to persist in human-modified landscapes and the potential influence of beekeeping activities.
Implications for insect conservation
Our findings can guide decision makers to support actions toward protecting and sustainably managing this important pollinator group, Asian stingless bees, particularly in response to ongoing environmental changes.
... It is primarily composed of sugars, mainly monosaccharides [2][3][4]. Stingless bees, unlike their honeybee (Apis Mellifera) counterparts, produce honey from the nectar of flowering plants and store it in pot-shaped structures made of wax cerumen [5]. ...
... All honey samples showed low pH values, which is characteristic of stingless bee honeys [5,6]. This finding is consistent with previous studies [3] reported an overall pH range of 3.4-3.9 ...
The study was conducted to characterize the physicochemical properties of honey produced from underground nesting stingless bees (Meliponula beccarii) in the Dandi and Meta Robi districts of the West Shewa zone, Ethiopia. A total of 27 honey samples, including 24 samples collected through careful investigation and excavation of natural nests and 3 samples purchased from the market, were analyzed in the laboratory. The evaluated physicochemical properties showed an overall mean of 306.64±87.95 meq./kg free acidity, 28.05±3.52% moisture content, 1.31±0.44 mS/cm electrical conductivity, 3.29±0.16 pH, 0.89±1.14 mg/kg HMF, 0.63±0.24% mineral (ash), 9.39±4.26% glucose, 0.24±0.01 g/100g sucrose, 10.81±4.95 g/100g maltose, and 16.57±2.55 g/100g fructose, turanose (0.20 ± 0.00 g/100g). The differences between the two district’s honey samples were significant (p > 0.05) for fructose value and considerable for free acidity, moisture content, and pH values. The honey samples purchased from the market showed similar physicochemical properties to the honey from the feral nests, with a mean of 314.33±88.72 meq./kg free acidity, 27.73±2.52% moisture content, 1.43±0.41 mS/cm electrical conductivity, 3.26±0.13 pH, 0.95±1.23 mg/kg HMF, 0.59±0.19% mineral (ash), 10.11±4.11% glucose, 0.25±0.02 g/100g sucrose, 11.23±4.52 g/100g maltose, and 16.33±2.41 g/100g fructose. The study found that the stingless bee honey from the study areas had distinctive low HMF, high free acidity, and low pH values, which may indicate the honey’s potential medicinal properties. The high free acidity in the Meliponula beccarii honey appear unusually elevated compared to other stingless bee honey and the Codex Alimentarius standards for Apis honey, suggesting increased fermentation that can originate from the bee species, plant and geographical origins, improper handling, and high moisture content. This study demonstrated that the honey in the study areas has distinctive physicochemical properties from A. mellifera-produced honey, which may support its traditional medicinal uses. Further detailed studies on ground-nesting and other stingless species’ honey medicinal values are recommended to provide scientific evidence.
... Stingless bees (Apidae, Meliponinae) occur in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide, including Africa, Australia, and Central and South America (Kwapong, Aidoo, Combey, & Karikari, 2010). However, many species still need to be taxonomically described. ...
Stingless bees interact with diverse symbiotic organisms, such as bacteria, fungi, mites and insects. We isolated and identified filamentous fungi presents in the digestive tract of stingless bees (Melipona spp.) to quantify this association and discussed their importance for the health of these insects. Twenty stingless bees were collected and their digestive tracts were analyzed. The slide micro-cultivation technique was used for morphological identification of the fungi. A total of 1,447 fungal colonies were isolated, identifying nine genera, with Aspergillus, Paecilomyces, and Cladosporium being the most prevalent. The findings highlight fungi's diversity and potential pathogenicity, with implications for bee health and biodiversity conservation. The first record of the genus Lasiodiplodia in stingless bees (Melipona spp.) expands the knowledge about the fungal microbiota of these organisms. Although some fungal species can be harmful, understanding these interactions can promote management strategies for stingless bees.
... One strategy to support colony maintenance is to create gardens with essential plant species near the meliponary, ensuring ample availability of pollen and nectar for colony survival (Kwapong et al. 2010). Other common techniques include providing supplementary food, such as sugar syrup (Villas-Bôas 2012), or offering pollen truffles. ...
The Meliponini tribe is the most diverse group of social bees, thriving across tropical regions. Breeding stingless bees (meliponiculture) holds significant ecological and economic value. In meliponaries, multiple species often share small foraging areas, a scenario less common in natural environments. Due to deforestation, stingless bees face a diminishing availability of natural nesting sites, which are often found in hollow tree trunks. Consequently, meliponaries serve as a crucial nesting resource. In this study, we examined whether Melipona scutellaris and Tetragonisca angustula share pollen resources when reared closely together in high-density nest environment at the RCCO Meliponary in Aldeia, Camaragibe, and Pernambuco, which could potentially lead to competition. Our findings indicate that these bee species utilize different pollen sources, being Araceae type 1, Mimosoideae type 1, Asteraceae type 1, and Myrtaceae type 1 the most important for differentiating between groups. Their daily activity periods outside the nest differ, leading to varying responses to changes in temperature and humidity. The results suggest that competition for pollen resources may not be a significant issue between the two bee species in such situations.
... These bees are important pollinators of a wide range of crops (Heard 1999;Amano et al. 2000;Slaa et al. 2006) and play a vital role in the health and functioning of ecosystems (Paz et al. 2021;Campbell et al. 2022). In addition to their ecological importance, stingless bees have a long history of use in meliponiculture and are valued for their honey production (Kwapong et al. 2010). Malaysia has over 40 known species of stingless bees (Rasmussen 2008). ...
The commercial stingless bee Heterotrigona itama naturally nests in tree cavities but is kept in wooden boxes in meliponiculture farms. However, at Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), these bees primarily nest in lamp posts. We conducted a temperature survey to investigate the potential influence of temperature on the selection of lamp posts as nesting sites by H. itama. We measured ambient temperatures in occupied lamp posts in shaded areas and unoccupied lamp posts in exposed areas on the UMS campus, calculating the percentage of time these temperatures fell outside the optimal range for H. itama. Our aim is to determine if the preference for occupied lamp posts was related to their distribution in relation to temperature variations. In addition, we analyzed the occurrence and timing of temperature regulation in lamp post nests by comparing temperature differences between occupied and unoccupied lamp posts across four-time blocks. Temperature measurements of occupied (shaded) and unoccupied (exposed) lamp posts revealed that exposed lamp posts experienced maximum temperatures outside the bees’ optimal range (27–32 °C), unlike the shaded lamp posts. The percentage of time that temperatures exceeded the optimal range was 9.72% higher for exposed lamp posts compared to shaded lamp posts. This suggests that H. itama may prefer shaded lamp posts due to their more stable temperature profile. The inside temperature of lamp posts, whether occupied or not, was consistently 1.54–1.76 °C warmer than ambient during hotter periods and closer to ambient during cooler periods, indicating conductive properties of metal lamp posts to retain heat. Occupied lamp posts exhibited higher inside temperatures than unoccupied lamp posts in the late afternoon and evening, suggesting active thermoregulation by bees to maintain optimal nest temperature. This study added our understanding to the adaptability of stingless bees in increasingly urbanized environment, contributing to pollinator conservation and meliponiculture industry improvement.
... Les abeilles sans dards sont des insectes de l'ordre des Hyménoptères, de la famille des Apidés et de la tribu des Méliponini (Kwapong et al., 2010). Les espèces de Mélipones varient en taille, en couleur et en comportement selon leur habitat spécifique. ...
... Les abeilles sans dard se trouvent dans les régions tropicales du monde, notamment en Amérique centrale et du Sud, en Australie et en Afrique. En Afrique, environ 26 espèces ont été identifiées, et parmi celles-ci, 9 ont été trouvées jusqu'à présent au Ghana (Kwapong et al., 2010;Ndungu et al. 2017)). Ces espèces sont réparties dans six genres selon Ndungu et al. (2017) Les abeilles sans dard, longtemps méconnues dans les milieux agricoles de plusieurs pays africains, jouent un rôle important dans la préservation de la biodiversité à travers la pollinisation des plantes. ...
... Dans des environnements plus humides tel que les forêts ou dans les heures froides de la journée, elles réduisent le diamètre jusqu'à le fermer hermétiquement, pour ensuite le rouvrir progressivement à mesure que la température augmente (Shackleton, 2018) Une autre stratégie d'adaptation des mélipones aux environnements est la construction de nids plus spacieux, favorisant ainsi des conditions thermiques optimales pour la reproduction et la survie de la colonie. Cette adaptation serait liée à des préférences spécifiques en termes de plage de températures et d'humidités relatives (Kwapong et al., 2010). ...
Science de la vie, de la terre et agronomie 6 Résumé Abstract Caractéristiques physiques des nids de Meliponula nichant dans les termitières de Macrotermes des écosystèmes du corridor 1 du complexe Pô-Nazinga Sissili Les mélipones ou abeilles sans dards nichent dans divers habitats repartis dans plusieurs écosystèmes. La connaissance et la préservation de ces différents habitats sont primordiales pour la survie de ces insectes. La présente étude, menée dans les écosystèmes (forêts, champs et jachères) des villages riverains du corridor 1 du complexe Pô-Nazinga-Sissili, vise à caractériser l'habitat et le nid de la mélipone nichant dans les termitières de Macrotermes bellicosus. Pour ce faire, huit (08) termitières abritant des nids de mélipones dans chaque écosystème, ont été examinées. Cette caractérisation a consisté en la mesure de la température et de l'humidité de la paroi interne des termitières, du diamètre du nid et du trou d'envol, de la profondeur, du poids du nid et de la quantité de miel. Les résultats ont révélé que le type d'écosystème n'a pas d'effet significatif sur la profondeur et le diamètre du trou d'envol des mélipones. Cependant, les nids trouvés dans les champs étaient généralement plus profonds (62 ± 9,4 cm), plus larges (24 ± 3,74 cm) et avaient un trou d'envol plus grand (11,2 ± 0,52 cm) et localisés dans des termitières plus chaudes (30± 1,8 °C) que ceux des forêts et des jachères. Néanmoins, les mélipones ont produit plus de miel dans les forêts (0,14 ± 0,09 kg) et les jachères (0,19 ± 0,08 kg) que dans les champs (0,09 ± 0,003 kg). Le développement de la méliponiculture est donc possible au Burkina Faso au regard de la résistance de l'espèces dans diverses conditions climatique et environnementale. Mots clés : Méliponiculture, termitières, nid de mélipone, miel, Burkina Faso Physical characteristics of Meliponula nests nesting in Macrotermes termite mounds in ecosystems of corridor 1 of the PO-Nazinga Sissili Complex Stingless bees, or meliponines, nest in various habitats across multiple ecosystems. Understanding and preserving these different habitats are crucial for the survival of these insects. This study, carried out in the ecosystems (forests, fields, and fallows) surrounding villages adjacent to corridor 1 of the Pô-Nazinga-Sissili complex, aimed to characterize the habitat and nest of stingless bees nesting in Macrotermes termite mounds. To achieve this, height (08) termite mounds harboring stingless bee nests in each ecosystem were examined. This characterization involved measuring the temperature and humidity of the internal walls of the termite mounds, the diameter of the nest and flight hole, the depth and weight of the nest, and the quantity of honey. The results revealed that the type of ecosystem had no significant effect on the depth and diameter of the stingless bee flight hole. However, nests found in fields were generally deeper (62 ± 9.4 cm), wider (24 ± 3.74 cm) with a larger flight hole (11.2 ± 0.52 cm) and were located in warmer termite mounds (30 ± 1.8 °C) than those in forests and fallows. Nevertheless, stingless bees produced more honey in forests (0.14 ± 0.09 kg) and fallows (0.19 ± 0.08 kg) than in fields (0.09 ± 0.003 kg). The development of meliponiculture is therefore feasible in Burkina Faso considering the species' resilience in various climatic and environmental conditions.
... These bees are important pollinators of a wide range of crops (Heard, 1999;Amano et al., 2000;Slaa et al., 2006) and play a vital role in the health and functioning of ecosystems (Paz et al., 2021;Campbell et al., 2022). In addition to their ecological importance, stingless bees have a long history of use in meliponiculture and are valued for their honey production (Kwapong et al., 2010). Malaysia has over 40 known species of stingless bees (Rasmussen, 2008). ...
The commercial stingless bee Heterotrigona itama naturally nests in tree cavities but was kept in wooden boxes in meliponiculture farms. However, at Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), these bees primarily nest in lamp posts. We conducted a temperature survey to assess lamp posts as potential nesting sites for H. itama , aiming to determine if the preference for occupied lamp posts was related to their distribution. We measured ambient temperatures in occupied lamp posts in shaded areas and unoccupied lamp posts in exposed areas on the UMS campus, calculating the percentage of time these temperatures fell outside the optimal range for H. itama . Additionally, we analyzed the occurrence and timing of temperature regulation in lamp post nests by comparing temperature differences between occupied and unoccupied lamp posts across four-time blocks. Temperature measurements of occupied (shaded) and unoccupied (exposed) lamp posts revealed that shaded lamp posts experienced temperatures outside the bees' optimal range (27°C-32°C) less often than exposed lamp posts (68.4% vs. 78.12%). This suggests that H. itama may prefer shaded lamp posts due to their more stable temperature profile. Additionally, the internal temperature of lamp posts, whether occupied or not, was consistently 1.54–1.76°C warmer than ambient during hotter periods and closer to ambient during cooler periods, indicating inherent insulation properties of the metal lamp posts. However, a notable difference in temperature between occupied and unoccupied posts was observed in the late afternoon and evening, suggesting active thermoregulation by bees to maintain optimal nest temperature.
... Additionally, unlike traditional methods that use about 30 to 50% o biological material rom mother colonies (Kwapong et al., 2010;Villas-Bôas, 2018) and take longer to obtain new colonies due to the time taken or the emergence o virgin queens and subsequent selection by the workers (Wenseleers and Ratnieks, 2004), our method optimizes the process o obtaining new colonies by utilizing virgin queens that would normally be eliminated, using minimal resources and a gradual number o workers rom mother colonies without compromising their productive potential, and producing a greater number o new colonies in less time. ...
Melipona subnitida is a stingless bee species native to northeastern Brazil and of utmost ecological and economic importance for this region due to its products used and marketed by local populations, as well as its role in pollinating plants in the Caatinga biome and various cultivated species, especially in protected environments. However, the low number of colonies owned by beekeepers is the main obstacle to the widespread use of these stingless bees in agricultural pollination programs. Conventional multiplication methods produce few colonies per year and do not meet the potential demand. Here, we present a colony multiplication method suitable for producing many colonies, whether for expanding the number of colonies in the meliponary to increase income from products, selling colonies, mass production for use in agricultural pollination programs, or reintroducing the species into conservation areas. Although the method has been developed and tested only with M. subnitida, it can potentially be used for any other species of the genus Melipona.
... In this chapter, thereore, we do not intend to present how to keep stingless bees, the hives used or their breeding, or management techniques, as this inormation is already widely available in the literature (Nogueira-Neto, 1997;Oliveira and Kerr, 2000;Klumpp, 2019;Kwapong et al., 2010;Carvalho-Zilse et al., 2012). Here, our ocus is to report the eorts made by Brazilian researchers, including our group, or the in vitro production o S. a. ...
... It is common to see S. depilis Several methods can be used in colony multiplication, but most o them are quite similar and involve splitting strong colonies with a good population into two or more new colonies. These donor colonies contribute 30 to 50% o their resources (queen cells, brood combs, ood pots, workers, and construction materials) to orm the new colonies (Nogueira-Neto, 1997;Kwapong et al., 2010). ...
The genus Scaptotrigona encompasses a wide variety of species. In recent years, research on this group of bees has highlighted its signficant potential for use in crop pollination. However, the low efficiency o the techniques for colony multiplication has limited the number of colonies available for this purpose. Recent studies have explored alternative methods for producing new colonies, including in vitro queen production, since the shortage of new queens is one of the main factors restricting colony production through traditional methods. Here, we present our efforts with this technique in producing queens of S. aff. depilis, discussing its advantages and limitations, as well as the use of these bees in agricultural pollination.
... Embora as colônias produzidas pelo nosso método tenham apenas 100 a 200 operárias após as oito semanas necessárias para se tornarem independentes em comparação com as cerca de 200 a 250 da divisão de uma colônia orte usando métodos convencionais Imperatriz-Fonseca, 1999;Villas-Bôas, 2012), ele tem a grande vantagem de permitir que uma colônia matriz possa produzir muitas novas colônias por ano. Além disso, ao contrário dos métodos tradicionais que utilizam cerca de 30 a 50% de material biológico das colônias-mãe (Kwapong et al., 2010; Villas-Bôas, 2018) e demoram mais para obtenção das novas colônias dado o tempo levado para a emergência de rainhas virgens e posterior seleção pelas operárias (Wenseleers;Ratnieks, 2004), nosso método proporciona a otimização do processo de obtenção de novas colônias aproveitando rainhas virgens que normalmente seriam eliminadas, usa um mínimo de recursos e número gradual de operárias das colônias-mãe sem comprometer seus potenciais produtivos e produz um maior número de novas colônias em menos tempo. ...
Melipona subnitida é uma abelha nativa do Nordeste do Brasil e de suma importância ecológica e econômica para essa região por gerar produtos utilizados e comercializados pelas populações locais, além de ser responsável pela polinização de plantas do bioma Caatinga e várias espécies cultivadas, especialmente em ambiente protegido. Porém, a baixa disponibilidade de colônias constitui o principal entrave para o uso em larga escala dessas abelhas sem ferrão em programas de polinização agrícola. Os métodos convencionais de multiplicação produzem poucas colônias por ano e não atendem a demanda potencial. Aqui, apresentamos um método de multiplicação de colônias adequado quando se precisa produzir grande número de colônias, seja com a finalidade da expansão de criatórios visando a obtenção de maior renda com os produtos, venda de colônias, produção massal para o uso em programas de polinização agrícola, ou reintrodução da espécie em áreas de conservação. Embora o método tenha sido desenvolvido e testado apenas com M. subnitida, ele pode potencialmente ser utilizado para qualquer outra espécie do gênero Melipona.
