Meliponini do estado de Pernambuco, Brasil

Abstract

Meliponini is a tribe of eussocial bees popularly known as stingless bees. This group is recognized for its economic value in the production of honey and other honey products such as wax, pollen and geopropolis. However, it is in the pollination service that these bees stand out. However, it is in the pollination service that these bees stand out. This activity, associated with the ease and practicality of its management, represents an important tool to optimize agricultural productivity and the maintenance of ecosystems. Due to the great demand of the market, there is a need to expand the rational breeding of these animals (meliponiculture), and for this it is necessary to formulate a regulation that guarantees the viability, sustainability and safety of the activity. For the implementation of public policies that supply this demand, one of the requirements is the description of local (state) biodiversity. In this sense, this work is the first checklist of bees from the Meliponini tribe for the state of Pernambuco. The work used two methods to generate a list capable of being used by breeders and decision makers in their actions in favor of species activity and conservation. In the first, metadata from the literature and databases published on the internet (CRIA and GBIF) were compiled and available for consultation (UFMG Collection). In the second part of the work, specimens deposited in the ASA / UFRPE collection belonging to the state were identified using the specific bibliography. In the search for metadata, 34 species were listed, distributed in 14 genera, some records represent dubious determinations, which may be overestimating the actual number of species. In the identification of the material in the collection, 32 species were identified, distributed in 14 genera, some determinations could not be confirmed by the lack of reference material for comparison, and some records deal with exotic species that were translocated from their area of natural occurrence. We list 29 native species occurring in the state of Pernambuco and 3 introduced species. A short diagnosis of each species and photographic plates is made. We present the list and discuss biogeographic and conservation implications.