Levantamento da diversidade de abelhas nativas (Apidae meliponini) no Instituto Butantan

Abstract

In Brazil there are about 3000 species of bees, 300 of which are stingless, belonging to the Meliponina tribe of the Apidae family. Pollination is an important ecological mechanism providing great environmental services, being the basis for the survival of organisms on the planet and fundamental for human wellbeing. The purpose of this study was to survey the species of stingless bees that are nesting in the Butantan Institute Park. The nests were photographed with professional camera and georeferenced, the colonies most accessible to visitors will receive a plaque with illustration and basic information of the species. The individuals will be assembled and deposited at LECZ - Special Laboratory of Zoological Collections of the Butantan Institute. Identification was made through the entrance architecture of the nests and the location where they were made. The installation of information boards near the nests, the creation of a catalog and the meliponario would greatly help to disseminate information about the species that nest in the park and to promote educational activities for the preservation of the stingless bees of the Butantan Institute.