Abelhas Euglossina (Hymenoptera, Apidae) do Parque Estadual do Ibitipoca, Minas Gerais, Brasil

Abstract

Euglossina bees are important pollinators of many neotropical species of plants. Their males show the behavior of collecting aromatic compounds. The use of these compounds has been used to survey Euglossina bees in different regions of Brazil. This work aims to survey Euglossina bees on Parque Estadual do Ibitipoca (PEIB), comparing differences on: species richness and abundance in two physiognomic formations (Atlantic Forest and "Campo Rupestre"), seasonality and hours of activity of bees in these environments; the attractiveness of three aromatics in attracting bees. The study was conducted from January to December 2010. It was collected 162 Euglossina males belonging to three genera and eight species. The forest area had the highest richness and abundance when compared to "Campo Rupestre", (H'=0,65; J'=0,33 for the first area and H'= 0,29; J' = 0,27 for the second one). The similarity of species composition of the two sampled areas was low (QS = 0.4), this is probably due to differences of each physiognomic environment. The species Eulaema nigrita was the dominant secies in both areas. Euglossina bees were more active during the warm months of the year, coinciding with the rainy season. During the dry season, characterized by cloudy days, with high incidence of sawmill, males activity was very low or absent. Temperature was correlated with the abundance of males. The relative humidity was correlated with the abundance of males only in the "Campo Rupestre" area. Males were active throughout the day of collection, showing the highest activity at 1p.m. Among the attractive compounds, eucalyptol was the most attractive in terms of abundance (83%). In relation to diversity, Eugenol and vanillin were more attractive than eucalyptol, attracting four and three species respectively. The methyl salicylate attracted only Eulaema cingulata, while the benzyl acetate was not attractive. This study is the first survey of Euglossina accomplished in PEIB, contributing to the knowledge of some patterns of these bees "Campo Rupestre".