Orchid bees (Apidae: Euglossini) in Cerrado remnants in northeast Brazil

ABSTRACT

There is a general lack of information concerning the diversity of bees belonging to the Euglossini tribe in Cerrado areas closest to the Brazilian Amazon. The state of Maranhão is situated in the northeast Brazilian Cerrado and has become the agricultural frontier of the country due to the advancement of monoculture and cattle farming. These activities have suppressed animal and plant populations in large areas of the Cerrado remnants, for which we have not yet obtained adequate scientific knowledge of local species. The objective of this study was to conduct a survey of Euglossini fauna in the northeast Cerrado. We evaluated the variation in species richness, composition and abundance between two distinct vegetation types: Cerrado sensu stricto (s.s.) and gallery forest. Male bees were captured from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. over two consecutive days. Captures were carried out once per month from July 2012 to December 2013, using a combination of passive and active collection techniques, including baited traps, as well as a collector with an entomological net to collect bees near traps. We collected a total of 766 Euglossini males belonging to 24 species and five genera. The most abundant species were Eulaema bombiformis, Eulaema nigrita and Eulaema cingulata for the gallery forest site, whereas Eulaema nigrita, Euglossa melanotricha and Euglossa cordata were more abundant in the Cerrado s.s. The gallery forest yielded a higher number of male Euglossini (n = 503, 21 species) compared with the Cerrado s.s. (n = 263, 16 species). The presence of seven exclusive species in the gallery forest and three in the Cerrado s.s. indicated that both environments are important for the maintenance of Euglossini species in this region and highlight the increasing need for conservation programmes for the protection of Cerrado environments.

KEYWORDS:

• Baited traps
• cerrado sensu strict
• euglossine bees
• Euglossini
• gallery forest
• savannah

Acknowledgements

Thanks are due to Prof. Dr Fernando Amaral da Silveira and Dr José Eustáquio dos Santos Júnior for assistance in specimen identification. We thank our collaborators at the Laboratory of Bee Studies at the Federal University of Maranhão (LEA/UFMA), including Ms Dinnie Michelle, Ms Gracy Chrisley, Ms Carolina Malheiros, Ms Márcio Mendonça, Ana Paula, Fernanda, Samara and Roberth for the aid during the field activities. We are grrateful to the Foundation for the Support of Research and Scientific and Technological Development of Maranhão (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa e ao Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico do Maranhão - FAPEMA).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa e ao Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico do Maranhão (BEPP – 01247/15,Universal – 00346/15).