Adaptive behavior of Scotocryptus melitophilus Reitter (Coleoptera, Leiodidae) to live with its host Melipona quadrifasciata Lepeletier (Hymenoptera, Apidae)

Bezerra, José Maurício Dias; Peruquetti, Rui Carlos; Kerr, Warwick Estevam

doi:10.1590/S0101-81752000000100016

Abstract

Forty six beetles Scotocryptus melitophilus Reitter, 1881 collected in a nest of Melipona quadrifasciata Lepeletier, 1836 were studied. All beetles were put together in a large petri dish with 14 males, 14 virgin queens and 14 workers of M. quadrifasciata, which was not aggressive towards the S. melitophilus and flew with 3 to 10 beetles attached to them. When groups of 20 workers, 20 males and 20 virgin queens were put separately in three petri dishes, the workers become attractive to beetles after they were seven days old, while the males after the 19 days old. Only one virgin queen five days old attracted one beetle. The anatomic parts of the workers bees more attractive to the beetles when smeared to a filter paper were the head (32%), abdomen (29%) and legs (29%). The part of the workers bees that less attracted the beetles was the thorax (10%). 5. melitophilus, both males and females, are able to distinguish caste, sex and age differences of their host M. quadrifasciata, what can increase the adaptive value of the beetles involved in phoretic behavior.

Scotocryptus; Melipona; adaptive behavior; phoresy; caste

Adaptive behavior of Scotocryptus melitophilus Reitter (Coleoptera, Leiodidae) to live with its host Melipona quadrifasciata Lepeletier (Hymenoptera, Apidae)

José Maurício Dias Bezerra; Rui Carlos Peruquetti^I; Warwick Estevam Kerr^II

^ILaboratório de Genética Bioquímica, Departamento de Genética e Evolução, Universidade Federal de São Carlos. Caixa Postal 676, 13565-905 São Carlos, São Paulo, Brasil. E-mail: prcp@iris.ufscar.br

^IIDepartamento de Genética e Bioquimica, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia. Bloco 2E, Sala 20, Campus Umuarama, 38400-902 Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brasil. E-mail: warwick@umuarama.com.br

^{Correspondence address} Correspondence address: José Maurício Dias Bezerra Departamento de Química e Biologia, Universidade Estadual do Maranhão Cidade Universitária Paulo VI Caixa Postal 09, 65000-000 São Luís, Maranhão, Brasil E-mail: maubez@triang.com.br

ABSTRACT

Forty six beetles Scotocryptus melitophilus Reitter, 1881 collected in a nest of Melipona quadrifasciata Lepeletier, 1836 were studied. All beetles were put together in a large petri dish with 14 males, 14 virgin queens and 14 workers of M. quadrifasciata, which was not aggressive towards the S. melitophilus and flew with 3 to 10 beetles attached to them. When groups of 20 workers, 20 males and 20 virgin queens were put separately in three petri dishes, the workers become attractive to beetles after they were seven days old, while the males after the 19 days old. Only one virgin queen five days old attracted one beetle. The anatomic parts of the workers bees more attractive to the beetles when smeared to a filter paper were the head (32%), abdomen (29%) and legs (29%). The part of the workers bees that less attracted the beetles was the thorax (10%). 5. melitophilus, both males and females, are able to distinguish caste, sex and age differences of their host M. quadrifasciata, what can increase the adaptive value of the beetles involved in phoretic behavior.

Key words:Scotocryptus, Melipona, adaptive behavior, phoresy, caste.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. We thank Dr. Lucio A. O. Campos that allowed this work to be carried out with his colonies of stingless bees in the Universidade Federal de Vicosa. Dra. Cleide Costa (Museu de Zoologia, Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo) helped in identifying the beetles. Dr. CD. Michener, Dr. D.W. Roubik and two anonymous reviewers gave us competent suggestions. This work was supported by Universidade Federal de Vicosa and grants of Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologico (CNPq) and Fundacao de Apoio a Pesquisa de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG). The first author had a fellowship of Fundacao de Apoio a Pesquisa do Estado do Maranhao (FAPEMA).

Recebido em 29.IV.1999; aceito em 08.II.2000.

Aponte, O.I.C. 1996. Arthropodes associated with colonies of stingless bees (Apidae: Meliponinae). Pegone 4: 3-6.
Flechtmann, C.H.W. & C.A. Camaroo. 1979. Acari associated with stingless bees (Meliponinae, Hymenoptera) from Brazil, p. 315-319. In: Hungarian Academy of Sciences (Ed.). Proc. 4^thInternal. Congr. Acarol. (1974), 353p.
Kerr, W.E. 1951. Bases para estudo da genética de populações dos Hymenoptera em geral e dos Apinae sociais em particular. Anais ESALQ-USP 8: 219-354.
Kerr, W.E. & R.A. Cunha. 1990. Sex determination in bees. XXVI. Masculinism of workers in the Apidae. Braz. Journ. Genetics 13: 479-489.
Kerr W.E; R.A. Cunha & J.F. Pisani. 1978. Genética da determinação do sexo em abelhas. XII. Aplicação de métodos numéricos para agrupar sexo e casta de Melipona quadrifasciata anthidioides Lep. (Apidae). Rev. Brasil. Biol. 38: 391-394.
Kerr, W.E.; G.A. Carvalho & V.A. Nascimento. 1996. Abelha Uruçu: biologia, manejo e conservação. Fundação Acangaú, Belo Horizonte, 143p.
Kistner, D.H. 1982. Social insects bestiary, p. 1-244. In: H.R. Hermann (Ed.). Social Insects. New York, Academic Press, 437p.
Machado, J.O. 1971. Simbiose entre abelhas sociais brasileiras (Meliponinae, Apidae) e uma espécie de bactéria. Ciência e Cultura 23 (5): 625-633.
Nogueira-Neto, P. 1954. Notas bionômicas sobre meliponídeos (Hymenoptera, Apoidea). III. Sobre a enxameagem. Arqs Mus. Nac. Rio Janeiro 42: 419-452.
______. 1970. A criação de abelhas indígenas sem ferrão (Meliponinae). Chácaras e Quintais, São Paulo, Brazil, 2ª ed., 365p.
Roubik, D.W. & Q.D. Weeler. 1982. Flightless beetles and stingless bees: phoresy of scotocryptine beetle (Leiodidae) on their meliponine host (Apidae). Jour. Kansas Entomol. Soc. 55: 125-135.
Roubik, WD. 1989. Ecology and natural history of tropical bees. Massachussetts, Harvard Univ. Press, 514p.
Salt, G. 1929. A contribuition to the ethology of the Meliponinae. Trans. Ent. Soc. London 77: 431-470.
Wasmann, E. 1904. Contribuição para o estudo dos hóspedes de abelhas brasileiras. Rev. Mus. Paulista, São Paulo, 6: 482-487.
Wheeler, Q.D. 1985. Larval characteres of a neotropical Socotcryptus (Coleoptera: Leiodidae), a nest associate of stingless bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Jour. N.Y. Entomol. Soc. 93: 1082-1083.
Wilson, E. O. 1971. The insects societies. Massachusetts, Harvard Univ. Press, 548p.
Yanega, D. & R.A.B. Lescmer. 1994. Beetles associated with bee nests (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in Chiapas, México, with descriptions of the immatures stages of Vanomis balteatus Wernner (Coleoptera: Aderidae, Eudomychidae, Meloidae). Coleopterists Bull. 48: 355-360.

Correspondence address:

José Maurício Dias Bezerra

Departamento de Química e Biologia, Universidade Estadual do Maranhão

Cidade Universitária Paulo VI

Caixa Postal 09, 65000-000

São Luís, Maranhão, Brasil

E-mail:

maubez@triang.com.br

Publication Dates

Publication in this collection
22 May 2009
Date of issue
Mar 2000

History

Accepted
08 Feb 2000
Received
29 Apr 1999

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

[1] Aponte, O.I.C. 1996. Arthropodes associated with colonies of stingless bees (Apidae: Meliponinae). Pegone 4: 3-6.

[2] Flechtmann, C.H.W. & C.A. Camaroo. 1979. Acari associated with stingless bees (Meliponinae, Hymenoptera) from Brazil, p. 315-319. In: Hungarian Academy of Sciences (Ed.). Proc. 4^thInternal. Congr. Acarol. (1974), 353p.

[3] Kerr, W.E. 1951. Bases para estudo da genética de populações dos Hymenoptera em geral e dos Apinae sociais em particular. Anais ESALQ-USP 8: 219-354.

[4] Kerr, W.E. & R.A. Cunha. 1990. Sex determination in bees. XXVI. Masculinism of workers in the Apidae. Braz. Journ. Genetics 13: 479-489.

[5] Kerr W.E; R.A. Cunha & J.F. Pisani. 1978. Genética da determinação do sexo em abelhas. XII. Aplicação de métodos numéricos para agrupar sexo e casta de Melipona quadrifasciata anthidioides Lep. (Apidae). Rev. Brasil. Biol. 38: 391-394.

[6] Kerr, W.E.; G.A. Carvalho & V.A. Nascimento. 1996. Abelha Uruçu: biologia, manejo e conservação. Fundação Acangaú, Belo Horizonte, 143p.

[7] Kistner, D.H. 1982. Social insects bestiary, p. 1-244. In: H.R. Hermann (Ed.). Social Insects. New York, Academic Press, 437p.

[8] Machado, J.O. 1971. Simbiose entre abelhas sociais brasileiras (Meliponinae, Apidae) e uma espécie de bactéria. Ciência e Cultura 23 (5): 625-633.

[9] Nogueira-Neto, P. 1954. Notas bionômicas sobre meliponídeos (Hymenoptera, Apoidea). III. Sobre a enxameagem. Arqs Mus. Nac. Rio Janeiro 42: 419-452.

[10] ______. 1970. A criação de abelhas indígenas sem ferrão (Meliponinae). Chácaras e Quintais, São Paulo, Brazil, 2ª ed., 365p.

[11] Roubik, D.W. & Q.D. Weeler. 1982. Flightless beetles and stingless bees: phoresy of scotocryptine beetle (Leiodidae) on their meliponine host (Apidae). Jour. Kansas Entomol. Soc. 55: 125-135.

[12] Roubik, WD. 1989. Ecology and natural history of tropical bees. Massachussetts, Harvard Univ. Press, 514p.

[13] Salt, G. 1929. A contribuition to the ethology of the Meliponinae. Trans. Ent. Soc. London 77: 431-470.

[14] Wasmann, E. 1904. Contribuição para o estudo dos hóspedes de abelhas brasileiras. Rev. Mus. Paulista, São Paulo, 6: 482-487.

[15] Wheeler, Q.D. 1985. Larval characteres of a neotropical Socotcryptus (Coleoptera: Leiodidae), a nest associate of stingless bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Jour. N.Y. Entomol. Soc. 93: 1082-1083.

[16] Wilson, E. O. 1971. The insects societies. Massachusetts, Harvard Univ. Press, 548p.

[17] Yanega, D. & R.A.B. Lescmer. 1994. Beetles associated with bee nests (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in Chiapas, México, with descriptions of the immatures stages of Vanomis balteatus Wernner (Coleoptera: Aderidae, Eudomychidae, Meloidae). Coleopterists Bull. 48: 355-360.