João M. F. Camargo

New stingless bee genus endemic to Central American cloudforests: phylogenetic and biogeographic implications (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Meliponini)

Meliwillea bivea gen.n., sp.n. is the only known stingless bee genus endemic to Central America. External morphology and male genitalia show affinity of Meliwillea with Scaptotrigona. Its plesiomorphies and current sympatry with Scaptotrigona suggest Meliwillea is relictual and diverged in montane habitat during the Tertiary, predating the Pleistocene connection between Central and South America which allowed immigration by Scaptotrigona. Addition of Meliwillea to the list of Neotropical genera changes the phylogenetic position of Nannotrigona, making it sister to Paratrigona instead of Scaptotrigona.

Meliponini Neotropicais: o gênero Dolichotrigona Moure (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Apinae)

Neotropical Meliponini: the genus Ptilotrigona Moure, (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Apinae). The Neotropical stingless bees genus Ptilotrigona Moure, 1951 is revised. Three species are recognized: Ptilotrigona occidentalis (Schulz, 1904), endemic to NW South America - from NW Ecuador to southern Darien -, and with one isolated population in Osa Peninsula - Costa Rica; P. pereneae (Schwarz, 1943), endemic to the western Amazon; and P. lurida (Smith, 1854), largely distributed in the Amazon region. Ptilotrigona lurida and P. pereneae are the only known stingless bees that store pollen in association with yeasts (Candida sp.) and produce little or no honey. Nests are described and illustrated. Holotypes of Trigona suffragata Cockerell, 1922 (syn. of P. occidentalis) and Trigona manni Cockerell, 1912, specimens of Trigona heideri Friese, 1900 (syns. of P. lurida) identified by Friese, and one paratype of Trigona (Tetragona) heideri pereneae Schwarz, 1943 were studied. New synonym: Ptilotrigona lurida (Smith, 1854) = Trigona mocsaryi lutea Friese, 1903 syn. nov. In the cladistic analysis, species of Camargoia Moure, 1989, and Tetragona Lepeletier & Serville, 1828, were used as outgroups; the hypothesis presented is the following: ((((Ptilotrigona lurida, P. pereneae) P. occidentalis)((Camargoia nordestina, C. pilicornis) C. camargoi)) Tetragona goettei). An identification key for the species and other bionomic aspects are also presented.

Biology of the Bee Canephorula apiformis and Its Cleptoparasite Melectoides bellus: Nesting Habits, Floral Preferences, and Mature Larvae (Hymenoptera, Apidae)

Abstract Data are presented on the nesting and phenology of Canephorula apiformis Friese (Apidae: Eucerini), a monotypic genus of bees endemic to the arid and semi-arid regions of the Argentinian northwest. Aggregations of nests are found in the ground where the surface is horizontal and frequently exposed to the sun. The brood cells, 5–6 cells per nest, are at an approximate depth of 20 cm. Floral hosts include Prosopis strombulifera (Fabaceae), Atamisquea emarginata (Capparidaceae), Larrea divaricata (Zygophyllaceae), and Tessaria absinthioides (Asteraceae) and are visited mainly between 10:00 and 14:00 hr. Adults and immature stages of Melectoides bellus (Jörgensen) (Apidae: Isepeolini) were found in the nests, the first association for this cleptoparasitic tribe with any host other than the genus Colletes. Canephorula apiformis may have two generations per year while the voltinism of its cleptoparasite is uncertain. The mature larvae of both host and cleptoparasite are described for the first time and compared with known larvae of their respective tribes. Cocoons of the two species are also described, illustrated, and compared to those of related taxa.

Historical Biogeography of the Meliponini (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Apinae) of the Neotropical Region

The Meliponini have a pantropical distribution (Indo-Australia, the Neotropics and Africa-Madagascar) which includes continental disjunctions unique among the Apidae, revealing a complex history of vicariance events of great antiquity. The trait of disjunction by vicariance permits the inference that Meliponini possibly had their origin on the ancient Gondwanan continent and possess a minimum age near 100 million years (Camargo and Pedro 1992). The oldest known fossil of Meliponini is Cretotrigona prisca, from upper Cretaceous New Jersey—USA, c.a. 65–96 Ma (Michener and Grimaldi 1988a, b; Engel 2000).

The Panama microplate, island studies and relictual species of Melipona (Melikerria) (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Meliponini)

The endemic stingless honey‐making bee Melipona (Melikerria) insularissp.n. on Coiba and Ranchería Islands in Pacific Panama is described, together with the proposed sister species, M. ambiguasp.n. from northeast Colombia. The Coiba Island group and Panama mainland were surveyed, yielding one meliponine endemic (M. insularissp.n.) and six meliponine genera and species. The poor Coiba fauna of amphibians and birds corresponds to the poor social bee fauna and suggests habitat barriers generally precluded recolonization from the mainland during glacial periods. Many animals became extinct, yet some remain as relicts. Melipona insularissp.n. was isolated on accreted terranes of Coiba rainforest in the Panama microplate. Morphology suggests that M. insularissp.n. is not a direct descendant of the San Blas‐E. Panama endemic Melikerria, M. triplaridis. A phylogenetic hypothesis corroborates disjunct distributions. Rainforest endemics such as Peltogyne purpurea (Fabaceae) and Ptilotrigona occidentalis (Apidae, Meliponini) also occur as relictual, disjunct populations in Central and South America. These may have been isolated before accelerated biotic exchange began 2.4 Ma. Our work supports the geological findings of both a volcanic arc and the San Blas massif providing a substantial bridge for Melikerria from Colombia and Panama in Eocene to Miocene times. We suggest there have been taxon cycles permitting recolonization during glaciations, whereby colonies of M. insularissp.n. were able to recolonize Ranchería, a 250 ha island, 2 km from Coiba. However, rafting colonies nesting in trees, carried on vegetation mats, may have produced founding populations of Melipona in Central America and on oceanic islands such as Coiba.

Bee-plant community in a xeric ecosystem in Argentina

The bee-plant community in a xeric ecosystem in northwestern Argentina was studied concerning diversity, relative abundance, floral preference and phenology. Fifty-seven bee species were recorded, 42.1% of them endemic to arid regions of southern South America, visiting flowers of 11 plant species. The most abundant bees were Canephorula apiformis (Friese, 1908), Isomalopsis niveata (Friese, 1908) and Melectoides bellus (Jorgensen, 1912). No strictly specialist bee was observed. Some aspects of bee-flowers associations and distribution patterns are discussed.

Revisão das espécies de Melipona do grupo fuliginosa (Hymenoptera, Apoidea, Apidae, Meliponini)

Tres especies sao reconhecidas: Melipona (Michmelia) fuliginosa Lepeletier, 1836, de larga distribuicao, do Suriname e Guiana Francesa ate o sudeste do Brasil e noroeste da Argentina, M. (Michmelia) titania Gribodo, 1893 (revalidado), endemica do oeste da Amazonia, e M. (Michmelia) fallax sp. nov., do noroeste do Equador ate a America Central. Melipona fuliginosa distingue-se pela pilosidade dos tergos metassomaticos II-V, tanto do macho como da operaria, densa e plumosa, e pelo primeiro tarsomero da perna III do macho mais largo que longo. Em M. titania e M. fallax sp. nov., a pilosidade dos tergos II-V e escassa e simples, nao-plumosa, e o primeiro tarsomero tao longo quanto largo ou mais longo que largo. Operarias de Melipona titania e M. fallax sp. nov. separam-se pela forma do penicilo, que e fortemente sinuoso em M. titania, e nos machos de M. fallax sp. nov. as orbitas internas dos olhos sao paralelas, enquanto em M. titania as orbitas sao convergentes embaixo. Novos registros geograficos, dados bionomicos e uma chave para identificacao das especies sao apresentados. Adicionalmente, sao feitos comentarios sobre o padrao biogeografico e sobre as glândulas tergais das rainhas.

Melipona (Michmelia) capixaba, uma nova espécie de Meliponinae (Hymenoptera, Apidae) do Sudeste do Brasil

This species from the Mata Atlântica resembles Melipona lateralis Erichson, 1848 and M. seminigra Friese, 1903 from the Amazonian Region. It can be easily distinguished from the first and its nearest relalive, M. scutellaris Latreille, 1811 by having a more shining mesoscutum and from the second by the yellow facial markings.

Bee community of a beach dune ecosystem on Maranhão Island, Brazil

The bee-plant community in a beach dune ecosystem in north-eastern of Brazil was studied concerning phenology and floral preference. The bees visited thirty-three species of 20 families of plants. The most visited species were Vernonia arenaria (Asteraceae), Chamaecrista hispidula (Caesalpiniaceae), Passiflora foetida (Passifloraceae) and Turnera melochioides (Turneraceae). Fifty-five percent of plants presented an annual or long flowering period (from 5 to 7 months). The largest number of species blooming was observed from March to August (dry season), corresponding to the period of greatest abundance and diversity of bees. Based on the range of floral sources used by the dominant bees, three guilds of bees were noted: bees with a restricted range of floral sources: Melitoma segmentaria, Centris tarsata, Centris flavifrons, Ceratinula sp.; moderate generalists: Megachile (Leptorachis) sp., Euglossa cordata, Augochlorella sp., Eulaema nigrita and Xylocopa frontalis; and generalists: Xylocopa cearensis, Apis mellifera, Exomalopsis analis and Pseudaugochloropsis pandora.

Stingless Bees from Venezuela

A checklist of stingless bee species recorded in Venezuela is presented with information on popular names, studies on honey, taxonomy, distribution records, and biogeographic patterns. A total of 83 species distributed in 19 genera were surveyed, based on specimens of collection and literature.