Figure 1 - uploaded by Denis Michez
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Peinture néolithique rupestre de la Cueva de la Araña (Valence, Espagne ;-5000 av. J.-C.) représentant la "cueillette" du miel par une silhouette féminine..
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The new classification of bees (Hymenoptera, Apoidea, Apiformes) or the fall of the honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) from its pedestal. In this article, the author provides a historical review of classification and phylogeny of bees. Recent work suggests the paraphyly of Melittidae and their basal position in the bee tree, questioning the classificati...
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... longtemps, de nombreuses sociétés utilisent le miel comme principale source de sucre. Une des premières représentations d'insecte réalisée par l'homme montre d'ailleurs une silhouette féminine récoltant du miel dans une crevasse, entourée d'abeilles sommairement représentées ( Figure 1). Par ailleurs, l'observation du travail acharné des ouvrières a fasciné de nombreux curieux, intellectuels ou scientifiques. ...
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Se realizó un inventario de las hormigas ecitoninas del estado de Morelos, ubicado en la región centro-sur de la república mexicana. Los muestreos fueron realizados por medio de colectas directas y del uso de trampas de intercepción; ocasionalmente se capturaron también machos atraidos a la luz. Se encontraron 15 especies de hormigas ecitoninas: La...
Citations
... Cet insecte est l'un des animaux les plus étudiés en dehors de Drosophila melanogaster, les souris blanches , et bien sûr les êtres humains (Grimaldi 2005). C'est sur son étude que se sont longtemps basées l'apidologie et la systématique des abeilles (Michez 2007a). L'abeille mellifère est une espèce qui vit en colonie composée de 40 000 à 60 000 individus. ...
... Cette colonie se compose d'une reine, seule femelle reproductrice, d'ouvrières et, au printemps et en été, de mâles appelés « faux-bourdons » (Pouvreau 2004). La classification centrée sur l'abeille mellifère, peut s'expliquer par l'intérêt qu'elle représente grâce à l'exploitation des produits de la ruche, la facilité d'observation du travail des ouvrières (Michener 2007;Michez 2007a), ainsi que le rapport aussi privilégié entre l'abeille mellifère et l'Homme que peu d'insectes présente. Depuis longtemps, le miel est utilisé comme principale source de sucre par de nombreuses sociétés. ...
Evidence has been accumulating for years that pollinator populations are declining. The loss of natural habitats,in part linked to urbanization, is considered to be one of the major causes of this decline. Some bee populationspersist nevertheless in urban environments. The structure of their communities, as well as their foraging and nestingbehaviors can be affected by urbanization. Our objective was to assess the magnitude of these changes and tounderstand their mechanisms by using 24 sites located in the Grand Lyon along a gradient of urbanization(measured by the proportion of impervious surface). We analyzed interaction networks to investigate plant-beerelations, and man-made nesting structures on urban sites (squares of soil and bee hotels) to study nesting dynamicsand its relevance for bee populations.We collected 16,352 specimens belonging to 293 species. Periurban environments (i.e., with ca. 50% ofimpervious surface) had the greatest diversity of bees. Long-tongued bees and cavity nesting bees were moreprevalent in urban environments, but the specialization of plant-bee interactions remained stable along the gradientof urbanization. The species richness of the bee community was positively associated with floral diversity, theduration of flowering of plant species and/or their floribundity. Bee communities depended on these three factorsand also spontaneous (native and naturalized) plant species more than on horticultural plants (ornamentals andexotics). Finally, man-made nesting sites were colonized by a diverse bee fauna. Apart from Osmia bicornis, beesshowed no preference for the substrates in which they nested. Our work confirms that, even if urbanization changesthe structure of the bee communities, an important diversity of bee species can persist in periurban, but also urbanenvironments.In a context of increasing urbanization and declining bee populations, it appears essential to create managementplans for these wild pollinators by acting on the surface of flowering areas, the ecological network linking them,and the appropriate management of parks, gardens, and recreational areas. The presence of a diverse array of beespecies even in the most urbanized area makes these pollinators worthy of being a flagship group to raise theawareness of citizens about biodiversity and ecosystemic services
... Les abeilles, avec un nombre d'espèces compris entre 20 000 et 30 000 dans le monde et environ 1 000 en France dénombrées en 6 familles (Rasmont et al. 1995 ;Michener 2000 ; Apis mellifera L. Cette classification centré sur l'abeille domestique peut s'expliquer par avant tout par l'exploitation des produits même de la ruche et par les nombreuses observations du travail des ouvrières par des amateurs, des apicultuers ou des scientifiques (Michez 2007). La première classification moderne des abeilles est présentée dans la thèse de doctorat de Charles D. Michener (Michener 1944) (Michener 2000). ...
Interest in pollen-borne gene dispersal has grown with the cultivation of genetically modified plants. To date both experimental data and models of oilseed rape (OSR) Brassica napus pollen movement at the landscape scale do not clearly differentiate between wind- and insect-mediated dispersal. Estimations of pollen-borne gene dispersal would be valuable for managing potential escapes of transgenes. Our study provides clear evidence that a large variety of insect species can transfer viable pollen between oilseed rape plants over considerable distances (>1.1 km). Insect's diversity according to geographical site and years. However, the majority of pollinator have OSR pollen in their body hairs, only 39.4% of the insects caught on male-sterile flowers carried OSR pollen. Although we could not determine with precision the role of the wind and the insects in the OSR pollination, it would seem that insects take part in a more important way in pollination of plants present in edges of fields, thus increasing cross pollination rate. Our results provide valuable data to improve models of pollen dispersal for entomophilous crops at the landscape scale. These models are essential to help land-managers reduce pollen-borne gene dispersal from genetically modified plants to wild relative and field planted with non-GM crops
Contribution to the inventory of Hymenoptera Anthophila of the Lot department: a commented preliminary list. - This article presents a first commented list of solitary bees (Hymenoptera: Anthophila) of the Lot department (46). The list presents 398 species including 111 Apidae, 82 Halictidae, 79 Megachilidae, 92 Andrenidae, 27 Colletidae, 7 Melittidae. After a short presentation of the department, the article continues, for each species, with a presentation of their occurrence and their ecological traits (lectism, sociality, nesting). Through 3 major historical periods the rarity status of each species is added and compared to the IUCN red list of European bees; a rarity index at the departmental scale is also provided. A comparison is made with the French fauna of Anthophila. Finally, a focus on some of the remarkable species of Anthophila of the Lot department is provided.
Bees of the genus Colletes (Hymenoptera, Colletidae) in the Guérande peninsula (Loire-Atlantique, France). - At least seven species of Colletes have been found in the Guérande Peninsula. This paper illustrates the habitats where the species have been found, as well as the flowering plants visited.
Beekeeping is an agricultural sector that has a special character in Morocco. It is virtually present in different regions. The apiarian potentialities in Morocco are important and remain under exploited. Honey production is stagnating because of many difficulties concerning repopulating colonies despite governmental efforts to modernize the sector. This review is to present a synthesis about the sector of beekeeping and honey production in Morocco. It will allow describing the situations, to understand the challenges faced by the Moroccan beekeeping by focusing on: bee farming, honey production, professional organization, marketing and regulatory issues. The main issues of this sector is the preservation of the Saharan yellow bee, increasing honey production and productivity of the hives, the application of good hygiene practices, enhancing honey quality, regulatory revision, adjusting the current model of professional organization, structuring of honey marketing channels and finally conclude with recommendations and prospects.
Depuis plusieurs centaines de millions d'années, les insectes et les plantes entretiennent d'étroites relations ; avec l'apparition des fleurs, les butineurs se sont grandement diversifiés et jouent un rôle important dans le transport du pollen. Cette co-évolution est maximale entre les abeilles et les plantes à fleurs, dont l'activité de nourrissage des unes dépend la pollinisation des autres. Le terme «abeilles» correspond aux Apoidea Apiformis, représentés par près de 1000 espèces en France, dont une seule est élevée dans les ruches. Or le déclin des pollinisateurs qui touche de plein fouet les abeilles sauvages et domestiques est de plus en plus préoccupant. La majorité de nos plantes sauvages et cultivées dépendent, pour leur reproduction, de l'activité pollinisatrice des insectes et particulièrement des abeilles. Aussi, la faune d'abeilles de Rhône-Alpes et de France est encore largement méconnue, faute de références et de spécialistes... Il est pourtant nécessaire de faire progresser nos connaissances, pour mieux comprendre et appréhender les impacts anthropiques, et limiter cette perte préoccupante du vivant. Cet article tente de donner sommairement les premiers éléments pour entrer dans le vaste monde des abeilles.