Management of the Amazonian stingless , Melipona fasciculata (: Meliponini), for pollination of solanaceous in greenhouses

Giorgio Venturieri, Nercy Pires & Felipe Contrera Embrapa Amazônia Oriental

[email protected] http://mel.cpatu.embrapa.br

Ministério da Agricultura, Apimondia - 2009 Pecuária e Abastecimento Brazil Montpellier Introduction

• The use of for pollination of Solanacea, mainly the tomato, is based on the management of a European Bombus terrestris. • The introduction of this bee in many regions has generated problems of hybridization and competition with local . • The alternative solution is the use of native bee species. • In South America, despite the existence of many Bombus spp, the stingless bees offer a very diverse number of species that also make buzz pollination. Introduction • The tribe Meliponini has 391 species (33 genera) in Neotropics and about 100 species in Amazon (Camargo & Pedro, 2007). • Body size diversity and ecological habits serving for different size of flowers and consequently to many crops. • Some plays a good pollination service in crops, some rob resources and some destroy the flowers. • Different ways of keeping (nests with different architecture and living in different substrate). • In this study was evaluated two species, Melipona flavolineata (discharged) and M. fasciculata. At least 24 species and sub-species of stingless bees are kept in Brazilian Amazon

• Melipona crinita (AC) Fontes: • Melipona eburnea fuscopilosa (AC, AM) Assis (2001) • Melipona flavolineata (PA, AC) Venturieri et al. (2003) • Melipona fasciculata (PA, MA, AP) Carvalho-Zilse (2005) • Melipona lateralis, (AM) Cortopassi-Laurino et al. (2006) • Melipona manausensis (AM, PA) • Melipona melanoventer (PA) • Melipona nebulosa (AM) • Melipona paraensis (AM, PA, AP) • seminigra (AM) • Melipona seminigra merrillae (AM) • Melipona seminigra abunensis (AM, AC) • Melipona seminigra pernigra (PA) • Melipona seminigra (sub. sp. do Tapajós, PA) • Melipona grandis (AC) • Melipona fulva (AM, PA, AP) • Friseomelitta varia (PA, AM) • Friseomelitta silvestrii (AM) • Scaptotrigona polysticta (AM) • Scaptotrigona sp (amarela do Tapajós, PA) • (PA) • Tetragona quadrangula (AM) • Tetragonisca weyrauchi (AC) • Tetragonisca angustula (PA, AM) Body size diversity: could be explore for different crops

M. fuliginosa

Melipona

Scaptotrigona

Nanotrigona

Trigonisca

0 5 10 15 20 mm Apis mellifera hive inside greenhouse seed production of Brassica in Japan Kátia S. Malagodi-Braga

1.000 – 7.000 workers

10.000 a 70.000 iworkers with jataí (T. angustula) without pollination service fulviventris damaging tomato flowers Ways of keeping (nests with different architecture and living in different substrate) Melipona flavolineata Friese, 1900 discharged, didn´t adapt to the greenhouse Melipona fasciculata (PA, MA) Occurrence: EasternAmazon Occurrence: Zootechnique box honey

Portugal-Araujo, Oliveita, Venturieri orifícios de ventilação superiores (devem permanecer fechados com esponja, é importante para a saída do excesso de umidade do interior da caixa)

tam pa

melgueira 2 p ote s de (é colocada somente em ninhos muito fortes) alim ento upper nest

melgueira 1 (só deve ser colocada quando o ninho estiver forte)

so bren inh o favos de cria divisória dos ninhos base nest (importante no processo de desmembramento dos ninhos)

n inh o b ase

fun do orifício de entra da

orifício de ventilação inferior c irculação (permanece fechado até que a colônia fique suficientemente forte) do ar the system proposed by Embrapa Embrapa´s method Venturieri, Costa & Baquero

artificial nectar (syrup + nutrients) isolation

heating raising brood combs 70-100 young workers

artificial pollen release the colony latter

6-8% from the original nest manejo intensivo manejo Embrapa´s method Venturieri, Costa & Baquero

raising brood combs atificial nectar

artificial pollen incubators (heating sistem)

Foto: Luciano Costa intensive management intensive Diet impacts on Melipona flavolineata workers (Apidae, Meliponini) Journal of Apicultural Research (2009) Diet impacts on Melipona flavolineata workers (Apidae, Meliponini) Costa, L. & Venturieri, G. C., Journal of Apicultural Research (2009)

artificial nectar A 100 a (sucrose syrup + nutrients) 90 80 a 70 a a 60 a 50 40 30 20 food food consumption (mg) 10 0 T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 29,5 ac (control) B 29 a a a 28,5 ab m) µ 28

27,5

acini size ( 27

26,5

26 330 T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 (control) C a 310 a 290 a m)

µ 270 a a 250 230

oocytes size ( 210 190 170 T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 (control) Diet impacts on Melipona flavolineata workers (Apidae, Meliponini) Costa, L. & Venturieri, G. C., Journal of Apicultural Research (2009)

200 A 180 ac a 160 a 140 artificial pollen a 120 (soybean + 100 ab 80 fermentation) 60

food food consumption (mg) 40 20 0 60 T1(control) T2 T3 T4 T5 B 58 d 56 54 m) a µ 52 a 50 c 48

acini size ( 46 44 b 42 40 T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 1200 (control) C d 1100 1000

m) 900 ac µ 800 a a 700 600 ab 500 oocytes size ( 400 300 200 T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 (control) Pollen subistitute (saburá) in Melipona fasciculata G. Venturieri & N. Pires (under preparation) Red peper (Capsicum frutescens - Solanaceae) Sweet green peper (Capsicum annuun - Solanaceae) Cherry tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum- Solanaceae) vibration length in cherry tomato ´s flowers by Melipona fasciculata Fruit set in tomato varieties pollinated and not Production outside X inside greenhouse with pollinated by Melipona fasciculate cultivated inside pollination by Melipona fasciculata greenhouse.

OBS: outside the greenhouse all plants of cherry tomato Italian varieties was lost by bacteria Eggplant (Solanum melongena - Solanaceae) Eggplant flowers being pollinated by M. fasciculata () inside green house Eggplants (Solanum melongena - Solanaceae) and Melipona fasciculata

Outside too much Inside les moisture bacteria can be Outside flowers are damaged by some moisture promote bacteria controlled bees (T. pallens and T. fulviventris)

Heterostily flowers suggest the Melipona fasciculata Eggplants in greenhouse and necessity bee pollination Melipona fasciculata production inside X outside greenhouse with pollination by Melipona fasciculata

eggplant

thanks!

Leonardo, Luciano, Elisângela, Janete, Eduardo, Nazareno, Vilemar, Zifirino, Charles PROBIO, CNPq, FAPESPA, Embrapa

http://mel.cpatu.embrapa.br [email protected]