Estudo comportamental, perfil dos hidrocarbonetos cuticulares e morfologia das glândulas mandibulares e intramandibulares de rainhas de Melipona scutellaris com diferentes idades

• Autor(a) principal: Souza, Edmilson Amaral de
• Data de Publicação: 2010
• Tipo de documento: Tese
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: LOCUS Repositório Institucional da UFV
• Texto Completo: http://locus.ufv.br/handle/123456789/244
• topic: Rainha virgem; Hidrocarbonetos cuticulares; Glândula mandibular; Glândula intramandibular; Virgin queens; Cuticular hydrocarbon; Mandibular glands; Intramandibular glands; CNPQ::CIENCIAS BIOLOGICAS::BIOLOGIA GERAL

The virgin queens of Melipona scutellaris, as others species of the genus Melipona, are attacked and killed for workers. As exist few information about recognition of this virgin queens, this work had as purpose to test the hypothesis that the virgin queens of M. scutellaris are identified by workers for the use of chemical signal. For this, the behaviour, the cuticular hydrocarbon profiles and the morphology of the mandiublar and intramandibular glands of the virgin queens was analysed. The virgin queens of M. scutellaris are attacked and killed for workers in average with seven days of age. This attack is antedate by contact of the antenna of the workers in the abdomen of the queens and posterior decapitation. The cuticular hydrocarbon profile is different between virgin queens with different ages and fisogastric queens, as between virgin queens under influence or not of the fisogastric queen. The secretory cells of the mandibular and intramandibular glands of the queens of M. scutellaris showed characteristics that indicate the participation in the lipids metabolism. Considering that the virgin queens are atacked as from seven days of age and on this period they have cuticular hydrocarbon profiles differents of the virgin queens newly-emerged, we suggest that exist a chemical recognition of the virgin queens by workers. Furthermore, the mandibular and intramandibular glands could to participate of the synthesis of compounds that contribute with chemical communication in this bee.