Rodrigo B. Gonçalves

Higher-level bee classifications (Hymenoptera, Apoidea, Apidae sensu lato)

A higher-level classification of bees, in which the entire group is treated as a single family - the Apidae - is advocated here. A total of seven subfamilies, 51 tribes and 27 subtribes are recognized. These subfamilies correspond to the families adopted in the traditional classification. Although the proposed changes do not involve any major rearrangement, basically only changing the rank given to the main groups, the new system makes the classification of bees more consistent with that adopted for other major groups of aculeate Hymenoptera. It also departs from the 19th century practice, perpetuated in the traditional classification, of giving family-status to the main groups of bees. A correspondence table associating the taxon names used in the current traditional classification with those of the revised classification is presented. Scrapterini new tribe (type-genus Scrapter Lepeletier & Serville) is proposed to accommodate the southern African genus Scrapter.

A comunidade de abelhas (Hymenoptera, Apidae s. l.) em uma área restrita de campo natural no Parque Estadual de Vila Velha, Paraná: diversidade, fenologia e fontes florais de alimento

A standardized survey of bees visiting blooming plants in an area covered by natural grasslands in the Vila Velha State Park was conducted from October, 2002, to October, 2003. A total of 1552 specimens belonging to 181 species were collected. These species are distributed in 58 genera, 24 tribes and 5 subfamilies. The visited plants belong to 113 species, in 72 genera and 38 families. Megachile, with 20 species, was the richest genus, while Ceratina was the most abundant native genus. Apis mellifera was the most abundant species, with 28% of all bees collected. Among the native species, Bombus atratus was the most abundant. Monthly richness and equitability varied along the year, March being the richest, and November, the most equitable. Despite being traditionally placed within the southern steppes, the open grasslands of Vila Velha contain numerous species previously only known from the cerrados of central Brazil. Also, when compared to other areas with open vegetation in Brazil, the bee fauna of Vila Velha stands out for having the subfamilies Apinae and Halictinae with equal number of species. Lists of bee species and of their host plants are appended.

Changes in wild bee fauna of a grassland in Brazil reveal negative effects associated with growing urbanization during the last 40 years

Bee fauna and associated flora from a grassland site in Brazil, surveyed 40 and 20 years ago, were newly surveyed with comparable methodology to evaluate changes in the bee fauna of this site, considering that human population and urbanization has exponentially increased in the last 40 years. In general, bee species richness has declined in 22%, as well as their abundance. Some of the previously abundant species are now absent, including Bombus bellicosus Smith, 1879, Gaesischia fulgurans (Holmberg, 1903) and Thectochlora basiatra (Strand, 1910). No particular trend of differential decrease among either taxonomic or functional groups was observed, except for a minor increase in the proportion of oligolectic species and a 50% reduction in the number of large species. The first two surveys were more similar to each other in species richness per bee genus, while the two most recent grouped together based on measures of anthropogenic impact. Furthermore, the number of plant species visited by bees increased, with a pronounced increase in ruderal and exotic species. Crop cultivation, competition with honeybees and climate changes may all be related to bee decline. Nevertheless, the effects of urbanization, in particular intense land occupation and few preserved natural areas can be pointed as the main causes of species decline. Due to continuing increase in human population, increased erosion in diversity is expected. Habitat protection is an additional challenge to bee conservation in the region, with no local conservation units set aside for grasslands. State and municipal agencies should urgently consider the establishment of reserves for the few remaining patches of natural grasslands.

A molecular and morphological phylogeny of the extant Augochlorini (Hymenoptera, Apoidea) with comments on implications for biogeography

The Augochlorini Beebe is a New World tribe of bees comprising 663 described species. Relationships among the genera of this monophyletic tribe remain uncertain. Here I provide a comprehensive phylogeny using morphological and molecular information. In all, 54 Augochlorini species plus 16 outgroups and 3017 molecular and 105 morphological characters were analysed. Sequences for four genes were analysed using Bayesian inference, maximum likelihood and parsimony. Morphological characters were taken from a literature review and analysed alone and in combination with molecular data using parsimony. The monophyly of Augochlorini and most genera is confirmed, with divergence of the main lineages of the tribe around 55–20 Ma. Seven clades were supported by most analyses and are here treated as genus‐level groups, as follows (combined analysis topology): (Corynura group, (Chlerogella group, (Rhinocorynura group, (Augochloropsis, (Megaloptidia group, (Neocorynura group, (Augochlora group, Megalopta group))))))). According to this topology, dim‐light foraging and cleptoparasitism arose three times in the tribe. According to my hypothesis, the diversification of Augochlorini may have begun as a response to vicariant events, including the split of the Neotropical/Andean regions and marine transgressions in the Amazon region.

Bee and wasp responses to a fragmented landscape in southern Brazil

The available studies on Hymenoptera assemblages in fragmented landscapes have shown that these insects are sensitive to fragmentation, besides some different conclusions which are possibly linked to different landscape attributes and sampling designs. The present objective is to determine the correlation among the descriptors of bees and wasps assemblages with fragment predictors (size, connectivity and edge effect) within a fragmented landscape of Semidecidual Seasonal Forest (Paraná State, Brazil). For this purpose five forest fragments, from three to 484 hectares, were sampled during a year, summing up 480 samples of baited traps and 3,480 of bowl traps. We have found that abundance of Apinae and oligolectic bees increase and the richness of Augochlorini bees decreases with increasing fragment size. Connectivity has positively influenced bee richness and edge effect has positively influenced the abundance of oligoletic bees. Orchid bees also respond to the site predictors, especially for the Eufriesea violacea, which abundance was positively correlated with fragment size and connectivity, however negatively with edge effect, and Eufriesea nigrita which abundance was negatively correlated with fragment size, but positively with edge effect. Composition of bees, Crabronidae and Pompilidae wasps were influenced by fragment size. Plebeia droryana and Tetrapedia diversipes could be considered as indicators, according to their sensitiveness to habitat predictors. Our results are congruent with previous studies which found that bees are sensitive to landscape fragmentation, we suggest that the group be used in ecological indicator and monitoring studies.

The orchid bees (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossina) in a forest fragment from western Paraná state, Brazil

Abelhas das orquideas (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossina) em um fragmento florestal do oeste do Parana. Um inventario de abelhas das orquideas foi conduzido no Parque Estadual Sao Camilo, Palotina, Parana, uma unidade de conservacao de cerca de 400 hectares de Floresta Estacional Semidecidual. Tres garrafas-armadilha foram instaladas na borda do fragmento, cada uma contendo uma das seguintes essencias: 1,8-cineol, eugenol e vanilina. A amostragem foi realizada entre 09 e 15 horas, entre outubro de 2011 e junho de 2012, somando nove dias amostrais. Um total de 186 especimens distribuidos em sete especies foram amostrados, Eufriesea violacea com 140 individuos foi a mais comum, seguida de Euglossa fimbriata com 31, Euglossa annectans com nove, Eulaema nigrita com quatro, Euglossa cordata, Euglossa pleosticta e Exaerete smaragdina com apenas um individuo amostrado cada. De acordo com analise qualitativa e de NMDS a fauna de Euglossina de Parque Estadual Sao Camilo e representativa de Floresta Estacional Semidecidual, com riqueza comparavel a outras areas no sul da distribuicao do grupo. A riqueza de especie amostrada indica que fragmentos florestais, mesmo que pequenos e isolados, sao importantes na conservacao destas abelhas.

Register of a gynandromorph of Euglossa pleosticta Dressler (Hymenoptera, Apidae)

Register of a gynandromorph of Euglossa pleosticta (Hymenoptera, Apidae). Here we provide a description of a gynandromorph of Euglossa pleosticta with partial bilateral phenotypic asymmetry. The specimen was collected by cineol baittrap at Parque Estadual Sao Camilo, a conservation unit in western Parana. The bee has mostly a female phenotype, except by the right half of its head, including the presence of 11 flagellomeres, ivory markings on scape and parocular area, by the pilosity of the right galea, and by deformed male characteristics on mid and hind tibiae of right legs.

The normal values of spatial velocity in the second part of QRS (a cooperative study of 229 healthy individuals).

The Spatial Velocity (SV) represents the inscription velocity from spatial vectors of the QRS loop. According to Sano, this parameter has revealed a diagnostic capacity for some well defined pathologies. Using Hellerstein and Hamlins formula, the SV has been determined from the orthogonal Frank leads in a 250 mm/sec recording. Using Simonsons criteria, 229 normal individuals, arranged in seven groups according to age and sex, were used in an attempt to get normal values for the second half of the QRS loop. SV was determined in six time intervals of 2.5 msec from the 25 msec vector before the end of QRS. We found significant difference between the values obtained from each time interval, except in the 35--37.5 msec and 37.5--40 msec vectors. On the other hand, no significant differences were found among the normal individual groups. The 96th percentile distribution was used to get the normal extreme values in the entire group of individuals.

Phylogeny of the bee subtribe Caenohalictina Michener (Hymenoptera, Apidae s.l., Halictinae s.l.).

Gonçalves, R. B. & Melo, G. A. R. (2009). Phylogeny of the bee subtribe Caenohalictina Michener (Hymenoptera, Apidae s.l., Halictinae s.l.). —Zoologica Scripta, 39, 187–197.

Abiotic correlates of bee diversity and composition along eastern Neotropics

Native bee diversity is poorly documented for many regions of the globe, particularly in the Neotropics. The available structured inventories in this biogeographical region provide reliable data, but they lack a comprehensive interpretation due to the absence of an effort to relate diversity and composition data with environmental variables. We aimed to answer the following questions: (1) Do abiotic factors explain variations in the richness, diversity, and composition of bee assemblages? (2) If so, which abiotic factors explain each of these community descriptors? We used a database comprising 33 systematic surveys of bee assemblages along eastern Neotropics. We found significant effect of abiotic variables on biotic diversity parameters and assemblage composition. Temperature annual range was the main abiotic predictor affecting bee richness and diversity, while composition was explained by annual mean temperature, temperature seasonality, temperature annual range, and by annual precipitation.