| Trigona fulviventris | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Apidae |
| Genus: | Trigona |
| Species: | T. fulviventris |
| Binomial name | |
| Trigona fulviventris (Guérin-Méneville, 1845) [1] | |
| | |
| The range of Trigona fulviventris | |
Trigona fulviventris, known by the common names "culo-de-vaca," "culo-de-señora," "mu'ul-kab," "culo-de-buey," and "culo-de-vieja," is a species of stingless bee found in neotropical regions of Central and South America. [1] It is one of the largest and most widespread bees of its genus. [2] They exhibit complex foraging behaviors by integrating spatio-temporal learning and flower scents. T. fulviventris has traditionally been observed to abstain from aggressive behavior with other species; however, more recent analyses have shown that T. fulviventris emit pheromones that act as attack signals particularly when related individuals are captured by predators. [3]
Trigona fulviventris was first described by Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville in 1845. [1] It is a member of the order Hymenoptera, which includes ants, bees, wasps, and sawflies and part of the family Apidae, which includes other bees such as bumble bees, honey bees, and orchid bees. It is further categorized in the genus Trigona , a genus of stingless bees.
Two subspecies of T. fulviventris have been identified: T. f. fulviventris and T. f. guianae. [4] These subspecies are distinguished by coloration; morphological studies have shown that the subspecies cannot be easily separated by strictly morphological analyses. [4]
Trigona fulviventris individuals are morphologically characterized by the expression of two projections, called tubercles on their labra as well as the presence of four mandibular teeth. [4] The two identified subspecies of T. fulviventris, T. f. fulviventris and T. f. guianae, can be distinguished by differences in metasomal coloration. [4] T. f. fulviventris metasoma are rust-colored with some differences in tone between individuals, while T. f. guianae metasoma and the rest of the body are black, sometimes expressing some reddish tones. [4] T. fulviventris individuals are among the largest of their genus, ranging in size from 5 to 6.5 millimeters in length. [2]
Trigona fulviventris feeds mostly on pollen and nectar. Known species of plant from which T. fulviventris feeds are Passiflora vitifolia, Pavonia dasypetala, Heliconia imbricata, Quassia amara, Dioclea, Lantana camara, Tabebuia, Asystasia, Insertia, Psychotria, Stromanthe, Justicia aurea, Heliconia tortuosa, Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, Impatiens walleriana , and Fuchsia . [5] However, they have also been observed to forage opportunistically on fungi, dead animals, flesh, and fecal matter as well. [4]
Trigona fulviventris nests are made in the ground, often near buttresses and roots of large trees, and have also been found in urban areas (particularly in crevices in walls of buildings). [6] There is one entryway to each nest, which is made large enough for many individuals to pass through at once. [6] Their nest cavities are enclosed by a thick resin bitumen. [6] Nests are cylindrical in shape and very rigid, with no documented ornamentation. [6]
Within the nest, storage pots for pollen and nectar are between 0.7 and 1.0 centimeters in diameter and are partially separated from each other. [6] These storage pots are located to the sides of and underneath the brood. [6] Brood cells are oval in shape and are organized in regular, horizontal combs; there are between twenty and thirty combs of brood cells in a nest on average. [6] Brood cell construction in T. fulviventris is asynchronous. [6]
Trigona fulviventris is one of the most widely distributed bees of the genus Trigona and is found in Mexico, Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and the Panama Canal Zone. [1] It is more commonly found at low- and mid-altitudes and has been observed to withstand a wide range of humidities. [2] Habitats in which T. fulviventris colonies make their homes include both tropical dry and tropical wet forests. [7]
New T. fulviventris colonies are established in the spring every year when one or more workers from a previous colony leave their nest and begin scouting divots in tree trunks for a new nest location. [7] These bees have been shown to mark these sites with pheromones, often leaving odor trails to lead to desirable nest locations. [7] However, these pheromones can also attract rival T. fulviventris colonies, which can lead to aggressive encounters between the attracted workers and the new nest-initiation workers (further described in Nest Initiation Aggression below). [7] Once it is determined which workers will inhabit the new area, gynes (reproductive females) will mate with a swarm of males mid-flight and enter the new nest to initiate a new colony. [7]
Spatio-temporal (also called time-place) learning behavior, which is the ability of an individual to associate the time and place of an event especially in foraging, has been documented in T. fulviventris. [8] This behavior has been observed in species only when it is beneficial for the species ecologically, and spatio-temporal learning is not observed in species where resources that individuals forage for are made continuously. [8] The presence of spatio-temporal learning in foraging T. fulviventris bees suggests that it is an ecologically favorable behavior. [8] T. fulviventris bees were observed to learn the locations and times of feeding events, and even arrive up to thirty minutes before the feeding event in anticipation of the food reward and stay in the location up to thirty minutes after the event. [8] However, not all T. fulviventris workers have been observed to express this spatio-temporal learning behavior. [8] This variation in the behavior can be attributed to differences in foraging strategies among workers in the same colony, which may suggest that differing foraging behaviors within a colony may be a more evolutionarily stable and efficient strategy. [8]
Individual T. fulviventris foragers were evaluated for their flower constancy with respect to floral scent and were shown to have definite and specific preferences for a single floral scent. [9] In one study, between 78 and 87 percent of foragers were observed to visit flowers that had the same distinct floral scent during successive foraging events, suggesting that chemical cues are important to flower constancy. [9] Furthermore, T. fulviventris foragers were more likely to favor the same floral scent as the first forager to return to the nest, indicating that T. fulviventris foragers carry and relay food odors to other foragers inside the nest. [9] When presented with flowers of different coloration, foraging T. fulviventris individuals seemed to distinctly prefer one color to the others, indicating that visual components are also important to flower constancy. [9]
Scent marking, in which bees mark flowers that have already been foraged from with a pheromone, increases foraging efficiency and has been documented in various bees including honey bees, bumblebees, and sweat bees. [10] T. fulviventris individuals have been observed to scent-mark flowers they have already visited and reject flowers that have been visited in the preceding forty-five minutes. [10] However, this behavior was not observed with every foraging situation; one study showed that scent-marking occurred when T. fulviventris workers visited Priva mexicana flowers, but not when they visited Crotalaria cajanifolia flowers. [10] This indicates that scent-marking is not always the most favorable foraging strategy and is context-dependent. [10] For instance, P. mexicana flowers are deep and require bees to climb inside the flower to reach the nectar, which is costly in terms of both time and energy; therefore, it is not worth expending energy and time on foraging on a P. mexicana flower that has already been visited. [10] However, C. cajanifolia flowers are relatively easier to forage from, so visiting a C. cajanifolia flower that has already been visited is not as costly for a T. fulviventris worker. [10]
Trigona fulviventris individuals have been observed to abstain from engaging in aggressive behaviors with individuals of other species, particularly larger species like humans. However, T. fulviventris engages in aggressive behavior with smaller arthropods as well as other T. fulviventris individuals, particularly those of other colonies, especially during nest initiation. [3]
The heads of T. fulviventris workers have been analyzed for the presence of chemicals that can act as pheromones and attack signals. [3] These chemicals are stored in the individuals’ mandibular glands, and the most prominent chemicals expressed by T. fulviventris individuals are nerol (at a rate of about fifty percent) and octyl caproate (at a rate of about twenty percent). [3] Nerol release has been shown to decrease the number of bees leaving the nest by nearly half, while increasing behaviors such as biting and wing vibration. [3] These chemicals can also act as attraction chemicals, attracting members of the colony to an individual captured by a predator outside the nest. [3]
Many bees of the genus Trigona have been identified as expressing aggressive defense behaviors, such as biting and attacking, mediated by the release of attack pheromones from workers when intruders invade their nests. [3] It has been widely reported that, even when large intruders invade T. fulviventris nests or nests are presented with a crushed T. fulviventris individual, there are no attacking or biting behaviors observed. [3] However, later studies have shown that alarm responses do exist in T. fulviventris individuals, particularly in response to smaller arthropods capturing individuals outside the nest, although to a lesser extent than other, more aggressive Trigona species. [3] These responses, which are mediated by pheromones, include leaving the nest to follow or swarm a predator that has captured an individual, as well as biting predators. [3]
While T. fulviventris does not regularly engage in interspecific aggression, there have been many reports of aggression within the species, especially as it relates to nest initiation. [7] As explained earlier, nest initiation occurs when one or more workers mark an attractive site with pheromones. [7] These pheromones can attract workers from other colonies, which results in aggression between the two groups. [7] If the two opposing colonies are represented by about the same number of workers, then the encounter results in a "stalemate" and neither group inhabits the marked site. [7] If, however, one group is represented in much greater numbers, they are permitted to establish a new colony at the marked site. [7] This pheromone-marking and aggression leads to the even distribution of T. fulviventris nests so as to minimize the amount of aggression between colonies (i.e. as a result of pheromone signals, no two nests are established in close proximity to lessen the likelihood of intraspecific aggression). [7]
Trigona fulviventris individuals are capable of distinguishing nestmates from non-nestmates through recognition of a range of compounds. [11] These compounds include hydrocarbons and fatty acids that are present in T. fulviventris wax as well as locally available floral oils that are present in plant material used to construct nests. [11] These odor cues are important to judging which individuals are nestmates and which are not, which is necessary in determining which individuals to engage in aggressive encounters with. [11] The amount of time that passes between the first encounter of two bees and the start of aggression between them, called mean latency, is negatively correlated with the occurrence of aggression. [11] In other words, the longer it takes two bees to initiate aggressive behaviors, the less likely it will be that there will be aggression between them. [11] This relationship could be a result of variations in the magnitudes of the differences in olfactory signals two bees put out. [11] For instance, if one T. fulviventris bee has only a slightly different signal than another bee, it will take longer to analyze this difference and engage in an aggressive behavior. [11] In contrast, a large difference in signal is more likely to be noticed immediately and aggressive behaviors can occur more quickly, decreasing the mean latency. [11]
Trigona fulviventris, like other Trigona bees, does not display stinging behavior. [12] Some bees in the genus Trigona have been shown to harbor vestigial stinging accessories; these vestigial structures are largely absent in T. fulviventris individuals. [12]
The sticky resin used by T. fulviventris workers in building their nests has been prized by Colombian fisherman as an effective means of caulking fishing canoes that have sprung leaks. [13]
Lasioglossum malachurum, the sharp-collared furrow bee, is a small European halictid bee. This species is obligately eusocial, with queens and workers, though the differences between the castes are not nearly as extreme as in honey bees. Early taxonomists mistakenly assigned the worker females to a different species from the queens. They are small, shiny, mostly black bees with off-white hair bands at the bases of the abdominal segments. L. malachurum is one of the more extensively studied species in the genus Lasioglossum, also known as sweat bees. Researchers have discovered that the eusocial behavior in colonies of L. malachurum varies significantly dependent upon the region of Europe in which each colony is located.
Trigona is one of the largest genera of stingless bees, comprising about 32 species, exclusively occurring in the New World, and formerly including many more subgenera than the present assemblage; many of these former subgenera have been elevated to generic status.
Bombus lapidarius is a species of bumblebee in the subgenus Melanobombus. Commonly known as the red-tailed bumblebee, B. lapidarius can be found throughout much of Central Europe. Known for its distinctive black and red body, this social bee is important in pollination.
Bombus bohemicus, also known as the gypsy's cuckoo bumblebee, is a species of socially parasitic cuckoo bumblebee found in most of Europe with the exception of the southern Iberian Peninsula and Iceland. B. bohemicus practices inquilinism, or brood parasitism, of other bumblebee species. B. bohemicus is a generalist parasite, successfully invading several species from genus Bombus. The invading queen mimics the host nest's chemical signals, allowing her to assume a reproductively dominant role as well as manipulation of host worker fertility and behavior.
Ropalidia marginata is an Old World species of paper wasp. It is primitively eusocial, not showing the same bias in brood care seen in other social insects with greater asymmetry in relatedness. The species employees a variety of colony founding strategies, sometimes with single founders and sometimes in groups of variable number. The queen does not use physical dominance to control workers; there is evidence of pheromones being used to suppress other female workers from overtaking queenship.
Tetragonula carbonaria is a stingless bee, endemic to the north-east coast of Australia. Its common name is sugarbag bee. They are also occasionally referred to as bush bees. The bee is known to pollinate orchid species, such as Dendrobium lichenastrum, D. toressae, and D. speciosum. It has been identified as an insect that collects pollen from the cycad Cycas media. They are also known for their small body size, reduced wing venation, and highly developed social structure comparable to honey bees.
Trigona spinipes is a species of stingless bee. It occurs in Brazil, where it is called arapuá, aripuá, irapuá, japurá or abelha-cachorro ("dog-bee"). The species name means "spiny feet" in Latin. Trigona spinipes builds its nest on trees, out of mud, resin, wax, and assorted debris, including dung. Therefore, its honey is not fit for consumption, even though it is reputed to be of good quality by itself, and is used in folk medicine. Colonies may have from 5,000 to over 100,000 workers.
Bumblebees, like the honeybee collect nectar and pollen from flowers and store them for food. Many individuals must be recruited to forage for food to provide for the hive. Some bee species have highly developed ways of communicating with each other about the location and quality of food resources ranging from physical to chemical displays. Honey bees are known for their specialized dances, such as the waggle dance which recruit other bees to the precise location of the food source. Bumblebees are not capable of transmitting this type of detailed information. Instead, the nest serves as a hub where bees receive information about the foraging bouts of her conspecifics. Differences between the communication methods of honeybees and bumblebees are mainly due to differences in colony size and nest structure. Bumblebees are distinct from honeybees because they lack receiver bees and are not capable of trophallaxis. They deposit collected nectar directly into the honey pots and don't share information of the quality of the resource with other bees through nectar transfer. Another bee may sample the nectar brought into the nest, and if the colony is in need of food or the nectar is high quality she will likely go out foraging herself. Other means of alerting passive bees to a potentially rewarding resource include releasing pheromone signals and increasing physical activity. For information on communication methods in honey bees, see Bee learning and communication.
Tetragonisca angustula is a small eusocial stingless bee found in México, Central and South America. It is known by a variety of names in different regions. A subspecies, Tetragonisca angustula fiebrigi, occupies different areas in South America and has a slightly different coloration.
Plebeia remota is a species of stingless bee that is in the family Apidae and tribe Meliponini. Bees of the species are normally found in a few states in southern Brazil and their nests can be found in tree cavities. Depending on the region, P. remota may have a different morphology and exhibit different behaviors. The bee's diet consists of nectar and pollen that are collected intensely from a few sources. Researchers have conducted a multitude of studies analyzing the changes that occur in the colony during reproductive diapause and what happens during the provisioning and oviposition process or POP.
Melipona beecheii is a species of eusocial stingless bee. It is native to Central America from the Yucatán Peninsula in the north to Costa Rica in the south. M. beecheii was cultivated in the Yucatán Peninsula starting in the pre-Columbian era by the ancient Maya civilization. The Mayan name for M. beecheii is xunan kab, which translates roughly to "regal lady bee". M. beecheii once served as the subject of various Mayan religious ceremonies.
Trigona corvina is a species of stingless bee that lives primarily in Central and South America. In Panama, they are sometimes known as zagañas. They live in protective nests high in the trees, but they can be extremely aggressive and territorial over their resources. They use their pheromones to protect their food sources and to signal their location to nest mates. This black stingless bees of the tribe Meliponini can be parasitic toward citrus trees but also helpful for crop pollination.

Nannotrigona testaceicornis is a eusocial stingless bee species of the order Hymenoptera and the genus Nannotrigona. Its local common name is abelhas iraí. This species has a large geographic distribution and occupies different biomes, including urban areas, around Neotropical America. The bees of this species nest in trees or artificial cavities because of this broad distribution. N. testaceicornis is important for agriculture because it will pollinate a vast number of plant species year round.
Scaptotrigona postica is a species of stingless bee that lives mainly in Brazil. It is a eusocial bee in the tribe Meliponini. S. postica is one of 25 species in the genus Scaptotrigona and is a critical pollinator of the tropical rain forests of Brazil. They construct their nests in hollowed sections of tree trunks, allowing for effective guarding at the nest entrance. This species shows colony structure similar to most members of the Meliponini tribe with three roles within the colony: queen, worker, and male. S. postica individuals have different forms of communication from cuticular hydrocarbons to pheromones and scent trails. Communication is especially useful during worker foraging for nectar and pollen through the Brazilian tropical rain forests. S. postica is a very important pollinator of the Brazilian tropical rain forests and is widely appreciated for its honey. Stingless bees account for approximately 30% of all pollination of the Brazilian Caatinga and Pantanal ecosystems and up to 90% of the pollination for many species of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest and the Amazon.
Paratrigona subnuda, commonly known as the jataí-da-terra, is a species of eusocial stingless bee in the family Apidae and tribe Meliponini. These social bees are prevalent in Neotropical moist forests, including Brazilian Atlantic and other South American forests. They inhabit spherical nests in moist underground environments with their forest habitats. Within their Neotropical habitats the P. subnuda is considered to be a very successful and common species of bee. P. subnuda’s main source of food is pollen and nectar from a large variety of native Mesoamerican tropical plants. They have been extensively studied due to social conflicts arising from single mate behaviors and particular virgin behaviors. P. subnuda also exhibits the particular daily behavior in which they open the nest entrance at dawn and close the entrance at dusk when all their activities are done.
Scaptotrigona mexicana is a species of stingless bee that lives throughout Mexico and is part of the Meliponini tribe. This species is sometimes termed "Pisil Nekmej" and is extensively studied for its medicinal purposes. This species is considered common and abundant throughout Mexico and it has been noted to thrive in tropical environments.
Melipona scutellaris is a eusocial stingless bee species of the order Hymenoptera and the genus Melipona. It is considered to be the reared Melipona species with the largest distribution in the North and Northeast regions of Brazil, with records from Rio Grande do Norte down to Bahia. Its common name, Uruçu, comes from the Tupi "eiru su", which in this indigenous language means "big bee". Their honey is highly desirable and the materials they create for nests have been proven to be a promising source of antibiofilm agents and to present selectivity against human cancer cell lines at low concentrations compared to normal cells.
Trigona fuscipennis is a stingless bee species that originates in Mexico but is also found in Central and South America. They are an advanced eusocial group of bees and play a key role as pollinators in wet rainforests. The species has many common names, including mapaitero, sanharó, abelha-brava, xnuk, k'uris-kab, enreda, corta-cabelo, currunchos, zagaño, and enredapelos.
Lestrimelitta limao is a neotropical eusocial bee species found in Brazil and Panama and is part of the Apidae family. It is a species of stingless bees that practices obligate nest robbing. They have never been spotted foraging from flowers, an observation that supports their raiding behavior. Because of their lack of hind corbiculae, they must raid to obtain enough protein in their diet in the form of pollen and nectar. Lestrimelitta limao secrete a lemon-scented alarm allomone, from which they receive their name, in order to conduct successful raids. L. limao are hypothesized to produce poisonous honey that is toxic if consumed by humans. Because robber bees are so rare and difficult to observe, there is a limited scope of information available.
Bombus vancouverensis is a common species of eusocial bumblebee of the subgenus Pyrobombus. B. vancouverensis inhabits mountainous regions of western North America, where it has long been considered as a synonym of Bombus bifarius, and essentially all of the literature on bifarius refers instead to vancouverensis. B. vancouverensis has been identified as one of the two species of bumblebee observed to use pheromones in kin recognition. The other is the frigid bumblebee, Bombus frigidus.
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