Abstract
The possible significance of nestmate recognition in prevention of robbing and parasitism in three species of stingless bees was assessed. Nestmate discrimination abilities vary among them; Melipona quadrifasciata workers attacked 74% of nonnestmate conspecifics that were encountered, while M. scutellaris and M. rufiventris were less discriminating, attacking only 14 and 60% of non-nestmates, respectively. In tests of interspecific interactions, M. quadrifasciata and M. scutellaris were the least mutually tolerant of all species pairs tested. Tests with Apis mellifera showed a high degree of intolerance by two of the three Melipona species.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 463-469 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Journal of Insect Behavior |
| Volume | 4 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 1 1991 |
Keywords
- Apis mellifera
- Melipona
- nestmate recognition
- stingless bees
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
- Insect Science