Thesis (doctoral)--Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 2004. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on May 10, 2006). Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 150-162).

As abelhas da tribo Euglossini, possuem elevada representatividade nas florestas tropicais (25% da comunidade apícola existente) distribuindo-se do sul dos EUA ao centro da Argentina, sendo restritas à região Neotropical. A espécie Euglossa pleosticta, com ocorrência relatada exclusivamente no território brasileiro, possui hábito de vida solitário e costuma estar presente em levantamentos realizados em remanescentes da Mata Atlântica. Pouco se sabe sobre sua estrutura populacional e os efeitos da fragmentação florestal sobre as mesmas. Sendo assim, a realização de um estudo populacional para esta espécie é algo relevante, uma vez que colabora para a compreensão dos efeitos da fragmentação florestal na variabilidade genética do grupo, sendo objetivo deste trabalho, caracterizar a variabilidade genética e morfológica desta espécie, utilizando ferramentas morfológicas (Morfometria Geométrica de asas e Assimetria Flutuante), e moleculares (DNA microssatélite e DNA mitocondriais). Sendo assim, trabalhamos com 293 amostras de E. pleosticta coletadas em três fragmentos de mata no Estado de São Paulo. Para as análises morfológicas, foram marcados 18 marcos anatômicos nas intersecções das nervuras das asas anterior direita de cada abelha. Nas análises de microssatélite, trabalhamos com oito loci heterólogos e para realizarmos as análises de DNA mitocondrial, analisamos 20 abelhas por localidade, amplificando segmentos do Citocromo B. Nas análises de Morfometria Geométrica e Microssatélites de DNA, as localidades estudadas formaram dois grupos, os quais corroboraram quanto às características de fitofisionomia, clima, altitude e distância geográfica compartilhadas entre as localidades. Nossos dados sugerem a presença de ecotipos localmente adaptados, o que pode ser explicado em função da plasticidade fenotípica, a qual é muito comum em insetos que vivem em ambientes variados. Na análise de Assimetria Flutuante, observamos valores significativos de assimetria flutuante e assimetria direcional para as três localidades estudadas. Já na análise de DNA mitocondrial, encontramos nove haplótipos, com diversidade nucleotídica (? = 0,01636) e diversidade haplotípica (Hd = 0,777), sendo apenas um destes haplótipos compartilhado (H2). O teste de Fst par a par indicou estruturação genética populacional, e na AMOVA a maior taxa de variação observada foi quando consideramos a estruturação de um único grupo com variação interpopulacional (61,9%). Os testes de Mantel realizados tanto para distância genética quanto para distância morfológica, não apresentaram correlação quando relacionadas com distância geográfica. A falta de concordância entre os marcadores moleculares, é algo que já foi relatado em outros trabalhos e pode ser explicado em função da diferente taxa de evolução dos mesmos, uma vez que o marcador mitocondrial é mais conservado quando comparado com o de microssatélite. Em conjunto, estes marcadores apontam para a formação de subpopulações localmente adaptadas (ecotipos) para a espécie de E. pleosticta, provavelmente em decorrência dos processos recentes de fragmentação de habitat. / The bees from Euglossini tribe have high representativeness in tropical forests (25% of existing bee community) and are distributed from the south of USA to the center of Argentina, being restricted to Neotropical region. The Euglossa pleosticta species, with occurrence reported exclusively in the Brazilian territory, has solitary behaviour and, according to some researches, use to be present in Atlantic forest remnants. Little is known about its population structure and the forest fragments effects over them. Therefore, the realization of a population study of this species is relevant, since it contributes to the comprehension of the forest fragmentation effects in the genetic variability of this group. The ultimate goal of this research was to characterize the genetic and morphological variability of this species, usinging morphological tools (Geometric Morphometrics of forewings and Fluctuation Asymmetry) and molecular tools (Microsatellite DNA and Mitocondrial DNA). Thus, we have worked with 293 samples of E. pleosticta, which were collected from three forest fragments in São Paulo state. For the morphological analyses, 18 landmarks were plotted in the vein intersections of the right forewing of each bee. On the Microsatellite DNA analysis, we have worked with eight heterologous loci and on the Mitocondrial DNA analysis, we amplified the Cytochrome B segments to 20 bees per locality. In the Geometric Morphometry and DNA Microsatellites analyzes, two groups were formed from the studied localities, which corroborated to the characteristics of phytophysiognomy, climate, altitude and geographic distance shared between the localities. Our data suggest the presence of locally adapted ecotypes, which can be explained by phenotypic plasticity, which is very common in insects living in different environments. In the Fluctuation Asymmetry analysis, we observed significant values of Fluctuation and Directional Asymmetry for all studied localities. In the mitochondrial DNA analysis, we found nine haplotypes with nucleotide diversity (? = 0.01636) and haplotypic diversity (Hd = 0.777), where only one was shared (H2). The Fst pairwise test indicated population genetic structuring and, in AMOVA, the highest rate of variation was observed when we considered the structuring of a single group with interpopulation variation (61.9%). The Mantel test performed for both genetic and morphological distances, did not present correlation when related to geographic distance. The disagreement between the molecular markers has already been reported in other studies and can be explained by the different rate of evolution of these markers, since the mitochondrial marker is more conserved when compared to the microsatellite. Together, these markers indicate the formation of locally adapted subpopulations (ecotypes) for the species E. pleosticta, probably due to the recent cases of habitat fragmentation.

As abelhas da tribo Euglossini, possuem elevada representatividade nas florestas tropicais (25% da comunidade apícola existente) distribuindo-se do sul dos EUA ao centro da Argentina, sendo restritas à região Neotropical. A espécie Euglossa pleosticta, com ocorrência relatada exclusivamente no território brasileiro, possui hábito de vida solitário e costuma estar presente em levantamentos realizados em remanescentes da Mata Atlântica. Pouco se sabe sobre sua estrutura populacional e os efeitos da fragmentação florestal sobre as mesmas. Sendo assim, a realização de um estudo populacional para esta espécie é algo relevante, uma vez que colabora para a compreensão dos efeitos da fragmentação florestal na variabilidade genética do grupo, sendo objetivo deste trabalho, caracterizar a variabilidade genética e morfológica desta espécie, utilizando ferramentas morfológicas (Morfometria Geométrica de asas e Assimetria Flutuante), e moleculares (DNA microssatélite e DNA mitocondriais). Sendo assim, trabalhamos com 293 amostras de E. pleosticta coletadas em três fragmentos de mata no Estado de São Paulo. Para as análises morfológicas, foram marcados 18 marcos anatômicos nas intersecções das nervuras das asas anterior direita de cada abelha. Nas análises de microssatélite, trabalhamos com oito loci heterólogos e para realizarmos as análises de DNA mitocondrial, analisamos 20 abelhas por localidade, amplificando segmentos do Citocromo B. Nas análises de Morfometria Geométrica e Microssatélites de DNA, as localidades estudadas formaram dois grupos, os quais corroboraram quanto às características de fitofisionomia, clima, altitude e distância geográfica compartilhadas entre as localidades. Nossos dados sugerem a presença de ecotipos localmente adaptados, o que pode ser explicado em função da plasticidade fenotípica, a qual é muito comum em insetos que vivem em ambientes variados. Na análise de Assimetria Flutuante, observamos valores significativos de assimetria flutuante e assimetria direcional para as três localidades estudadas. Já na análise de DNA mitocondrial, encontramos nove haplótipos, com diversidade nucleotídica (? = 0,01636) e diversidade haplotípica (Hd = 0,777), sendo apenas um destes haplótipos compartilhado (H2). O teste de Fst par a par indicou estruturação genética populacional, e na AMOVA a maior taxa de variação observada foi quando consideramos a estruturação de um único grupo com variação interpopulacional (61,9%). Os testes de Mantel realizados tanto para distância genética quanto para distância morfológica, não apresentaram correlação quando relacionadas com distância geográfica. A falta de concordância entre os marcadores moleculares, é algo que já foi relatado em outros trabalhos e pode ser explicado em função da diferente taxa de evolução dos mesmos, uma vez que o marcador mitocondrial é mais conservado quando comparado com o de microssatélite. Em conjunto, estes marcadores apontam para a formação de subpopulações localmente adaptadas (ecotipos) para a espécie de E. pleosticta, provavelmente em decorrência dos processos recentes de fragmentação de habitat. / The bees from Euglossini tribe have high representativeness in tropical forests (25% of existing bee community) and are distributed from the south of USA to the center of Argentina, being restricted to Neotropical region. The Euglossa pleosticta species, with occurrence reported exclusively in the Brazilian territory, has solitary behaviour and, according to some researches, use to be present in Atlantic forest remnants. Little is known about its population structure and the forest fragments effects over them. Therefore, the realization of a population study of this species is relevant, since it contributes to the comprehension of the forest fragmentation effects in the genetic variability of this group. The ultimate goal of this research was to characterize the genetic and morphological variability of this species, usinging morphological tools (Geometric Morphometrics of forewings and Fluctuation Asymmetry) and molecular tools (Microsatellite DNA and Mitocondrial DNA). Thus, we have worked with 293 samples of E. pleosticta, which were collected from three forest fragments in São Paulo state. For the morphological analyses, 18 landmarks were plotted in the vein intersections of the right forewing of each bee. On the Microsatellite DNA analysis, we have worked with eight heterologous loci and on the Mitocondrial DNA analysis, we amplified the Cytochrome B segments to 20 bees per locality. In the Geometric Morphometry and DNA Microsatellites analyzes, two groups were formed from the studied localities, which corroborated to the characteristics of phytophysiognomy, climate, altitude and geographic distance shared between the localities. Our data suggest the presence of locally adapted ecotypes, which can be explained by phenotypic plasticity, which is very common in insects living in different environments. In the Fluctuation Asymmetry analysis, we observed significant values of Fluctuation and Directional Asymmetry for all studied localities. In the mitochondrial DNA analysis, we found nine haplotypes with nucleotide diversity (? = 0.01636) and haplotypic diversity (Hd = 0.777), where only one was shared (H2). The Fst pairwise test indicated population genetic structuring and, in AMOVA, the highest rate of variation was observed when we considered the structuring of a single group with interpopulation variation (61.9%). The Mantel test performed for both genetic and morphological distances, did not present correlation when related to geographic distance. The disagreement between the molecular markers has already been reported in other studies and can be explained by the different rate of evolution of these markers, since the mitochondrial marker is more conserved when compared to the microsatellite. Together, these markers indicate the formation of locally adapted subpopulations (ecotypes) for the species E. pleosticta, probably due to the recent cases of habitat fragmentation.

Submitted by Daniele Amaral (daniee_ni@hotmail.com) on 2016-09-14T20:10:01Z No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseGAF.pdf: 2448190 bytes, checksum: 08c41156c28e3e99e6284a8c18acb2d2 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Marina Freitas (marinapf@ufscar.br) on 2016-09-16T19:49:11Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseGAF.pdf: 2448190 bytes, checksum: 08c41156c28e3e99e6284a8c18acb2d2 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Marina Freitas (marinapf@ufscar.br) on 2016-09-16T19:49:17Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseGAF.pdf: 2448190 bytes, checksum: 08c41156c28e3e99e6284a8c18acb2d2 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-09-16T19:49:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseGAF.pdf: 2448190 bytes, checksum: 08c41156c28e3e99e6284a8c18acb2d2 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-06-26 / Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) / The orchid bees have always been considered promising for studies of the evolution of social behavior and reproductive division of labor. This is due to the fact that the orchid bees are the only members not clearly eusocial in corbiculate clade. In this study, the correlation between genetic relatedness and reproductive skew was investigated in the genus Euglossa, one of the five genus of Euglossini tribe, in order to support the understanding of the evolution of reproductive division of labor in Euglossini. Among the five genera of Euglossini, Euglossa is the most suitable for studies on the evolution of reproductive division of labor, because in this genus can be found solitary, communal and primitively eusocial species. Twelve nests of Euglossa cordata (Linnaeus, 1758) were analyzed. In this species, the foundation process is solitary, but small colonies are formed during nest reactivations, with females establishing different types of associations, in which their relatedness differs. During reactivations, one of the females performs oophagy and then oviposition in brood cells previously operculated by another females, consequently leaving a larger number of offspring. The behavioral analysis associated with relatedness estimates, made through the use of microsatellite markers, indicated that the dominant female perform oophagy followed by oviposition in all operculated cells by the subordinated bees. The reproductive skew was complete, regardless of the type of association established between the interacting females, and so reproductive skew and genetic relatedness was not associated in this study. Furthermore, the nesting biology of Euglossa was also studied, given the information scarcity about the nesting process in most species already described for this genus. Using the technique of trap nests, 43 nests of Euglossa were sampled. This study provides new information on the nesting biology of this genus, especially with regard to natural enemies associated with nests. / As abelhas da tribo Euglossini sempre foram consideradas promissoras para estudos sobre evolução do comportamento social e divisão de trabalho reprodutivo. Isto decorre do fato dos Euglossini serem os únicos membros não claramente eussociais entre as abelhas corbiculadas. Neste estudo, foi investigada a correlação entre parentesco genético e desvio reprodutivo em uma espécie do gênero Euglossa, um dos cinco gêneros de Euglossini, visando subsidiar o entendimento da evolução da divisão de trabalho reprodutivo na tribo. Dentre os cinco gêneros de Euglossini, Euglossa é o mais indicado para estudos sobre a evolução de divisão de trabalho reprodutivo, pois neste gênero são encontradas espécies solitárias, comunais e primitivamente eussociais. Foram analisados doze ninhos da espécie Euglossa cordata (Linnaeus, 1758). Nesta espécie, o processo de fundação dos ninhos é solitário, mas pequenas colônias são formadas durante as reativações, com as fêmeas estabelecendo diferentes tipos de associações, nas quais o parentesco entre elas é distinto. Durante as reativações, uma das fêmeas realiza oofagias, seguidas de oviposições em células anteriormente operculadas por outras fêmeas, deixando um maior número de descendentes. As análises de comportamento, associadas a estimativas de parentesco, realizadas mediante o uso de marcadores microssatélites, indicam que as fêmeas dominantes realizam oofagia, seguida de oviposição, em todas as células operculadas pelas subordinadas. O desvio reprodutivo foi completo, independentemente do tipo de associação formada entre as fêmeas reativadoras e, portanto, não houve correlação entre parentesco genético e desvio reprodutivo. Além disso, a biologia de nidificação em espécies de Euglossa foi estudada, dada a escassez de informações sobre os hábitos e características do processo de nidificação na maioria das espécies já descritas. Utilizando a técnica de ninhos-armadilha, foram obtidos 44 ninhos de Euglossa. O estudo traz novas informações sobre a biologia de nidificação no gênero, principalmente no que diz respeito aos inimigos naturais associados aos ninhos.

Stereochemistry plays an important role in nature because biologically important molecules such as amino acids, nucleotides and sugars, only exist in enantiomerically pure forms. Semiochemicals carry messages, between the same species (pheromones) and between different species (allelochemicals). Both pheromones and allelochemicals can be used as environmentally friendly pest management. Many semiochemicals, i.e. behaviour modifying chemicals, consist of pure or well-defined mixtures of stereoisomers, where some of the other stereoisomers can be repellent. It is therefore important to be able to separate them to produce a synthetic pheromone in a mixture that is attractive. Pine sawflies are a family of insects that in some cases can be severe defoliators of conifer trees. Diprion pini, Diprion similis and Neodiprion sertifer are severe pests for these trees and have got the most attention in pine sawfly pheromone studies. The pheromone precursors are stored in the female body as long-chain secondary alcohols, which, when released, are esterified to acetates or propionates. The alcohols are chiral, and normally one of the stereoisomer is the main pheromone component, sometimes possible together with other stereoisomers as essential minor components. Bicyclus is a genus of African butterflies, and especially Bicyclus anynana has become a popular model for the study of life history evolution, morphology, mating choice and genetics. The wing pattern of Bicyclus differs depending on the season, with large eyespots during the rain-season and small or absent spots during the dry season.  Euglossa is one of the genera among the orchid bees in the Neotropics that does not produce its own pheromone. Instead, the males collect fragrances from orchids and other sources and store them in a pocket in their hind legs. Both Bicyclus and Euglossa use semiochemicals similar to pine sawflies, and thus can be analysed by the same methods. Pheromones and other semiochemicals in insects are often present in low amounts in a complex matrix, and purification of the sample before chemical analysis is often required. A common method is gradient elution on a solid phase silica column. Separation of stereoisomers can be achieved either by using a column with a chiral stationary phase (CSP) or with pre-column derivatisation using a column with an achiral stationary phase (ASP) or a combination of both, with mass detection as the dominant detection method. The purpose of this work has been to improve the purification method, find suitable methods to separate the stereoisomers of secondary alcohols, and to apply this on extracts of insects. By selecting the right fractions to collect during gradient elution the purification method was optimised. To reduce plasticizer contamination from ordinary columns, solid phase columns of Teflon or glass were used. For pre-column derivatisation of different chiral alcohols various acid chlorides were tested. For the pine sawfly pheromone precursors enantiopure (2S)-2-acetoxypropionyl chloride was the best choice. To separate some of the stereoisomers achiral 2-naphthoyl chloride was used. For derivatisation of 6,10,14-trimethylpentadecan-2-ol (R)-trans-chrysanthemoyl chloride was the best choice. The derivatised alcohols were separated on different columns, both chiral and non-chiral. Varian FactorFour VF-23ms was chosen as a general-purpose column, the Agilent HP-88 column was the best column with an ASP of those tested, and the Chiraldex B-PA column (CSP) was the only one that could separate all eight stereoisomers of derivatised 3,7-dimethylundecan-2-ol, 3,7-dimethyldodecan-2-ol, and 3,7-dimethyltridecan-2-ol. To determine the stereoisomeric purity of standard solutions used in field experiments and extracts of different species of insects the optimised methods were applied. For extracts from B. anynana, Euglossa and Neodiprion lecontei this work describe the first determination of the stereochemistry of some of their semiochemicals. For the determination of the stereochemistry of chiral semiochemicals the methods for purification and separation presented herein have shown to be of great value. The results will hopefully contribute to a better understanding of the communication among insects, and ultimately to a more environmentally friendly pest control. / Många naturligt förekommande kemiska ämnen finns som två spegelbilder av varandra, ungefär som höger och vänster hand. Dessa kan ha helt olika egenskaper och det är därför viktigt att kunna separera dem. Insekter och andra djur använder olika doftämnen för att kommunicera med varandra, om det är inom samma art kallas de för feromoner. De kan bestå av ett ämne eller en blandning av flera. Dessa doftämnen kan man även använda för att på ett miljövänligt sätt bekämpa skadeinsekter. En fälla med syntetiskt feromon för en viss insekt lockar endast till sig den arten, medan alla andra är opåverkade. Eftersom dessa ämnen ofta finns som spegelbilder där kanske bara den ena är aktiv och den andra rent av frånstötande, måste man kunna separera dem för att framställa ett syntetiskt feromon som är attraktivt. Målet med detta arbete har varit att bestämma feromonet hos olika arter av tallsteklar som kan vara svåra skadedjur på tallskog. De metoder som tagits fram har även tillämpats på några arter av afrikanska fjärilar samt orkidébin från Centralamerika eftersom de använder snarlika doftämnen. Att få fram feromonet från en insekt är lite som att leta efter in nål i en höstack eftersom de ofta bara innehåller några miljarddels gram per individ. Provet behöver först renas, och en del av arbetet i det här projektet har gått ut på att ta fram en lämplig reningsmetod. Huvudfokus har dock varit på att ta fram metoder som kan separera och identifiera det eller de ämnen, och spegelbilder av dessa, som doftämnena består av. När lämpliga metoder tagits fram har extrakt av olika insektsarter analyserats. I några fall är det första gången som deras feromon bestämts i detalj. Resultaten kan förhoppningsvis bidra till en ökad kunskap om insekters sätt att kommunicera, och i slutändan till miljövänligare bekämpning av skadeinsekter.

A Mata Atlântica é considerada uma das grandes prioridades para a conservação de biodiversidade em todo o continente americano. Este bioma é um dos oito hotspots do planeta e caracteriza-se pelo alto grau de endemismo e pela alta diversidade de espécies que encerra. As abelhas Euglossini estão restritas à região Neotropical, com uma faixa de distribuição que se estende desde o Norte do México até a província de Córdoba, na Argentina. As espécies dessa tribo são abundantes em florestas tropicais úmidas/chuvosas e florestas subtropicais da América Central e América do Sul onde ocorrem em maior diversidade. Em virtude do alto impacto causado pelas ações humanas em áreas de Mata Atlântica e o pouco que se conhece sobre sua diversidade, este trabalho propõe um estudo geral sobre a estrutura das comunidades de espécies de Euglossini presentes em uma área de planície litorânea continental, Parque Estadual da Serra do Mar - Núcleo Picinguaba (PESM), e uma área insular, Parque Estadual da Ilha Anchieta (PEIA), no município de Ubatuba, norte de São Paulo, Brasil. O PESM abrange uma área de aproximadamente 47.500 hectares e quase todos os ecossitemas da Mata Atlântica são encontrados em seus domínios. O PEIA cobre toda a extensão da Ilha Anchieta (828 hectares), distante cerca de 600 m do continente. As coletas foram realizadas mensalmente, de Agosto/2007 a Julho/2009, com o uso de 14 compostos aromáticos utilizados como iscas artificiais para a atração de machos, além de indivíduos coletados em flores. Mil quinhentos e setenta e seis espécimes (73 fêmeas e 1503 machos), pertencentes a 24 espécies, foram registrados no presente trabalho. A espécie mais abundante foi Euglossa cordata (36,4%), seguida por Euglossa iopoecila (13,9%) e Euglossa sapphirina (13,3%). Dezoito espécies foram amostradas na Ilha Anchieta, sendo que quatro delas foram exclusivas desta área, ao passo que 20 espécies foram amostradas no PESM e seis delas foram registradas apenas neste local. Na Ilha Anchieta, Eg. cordata representou 63,2%, quase dois terços do total de espécies coletadas. Já em Picinguaba, Eg. iopoecila (23,0%) e Eg. sapphirina (21,0%) foram as duas espécies dominantes. A espécie Eg. iopoecila, a mais abundante na área continental, não foi registrada na llha e Eg. sapphirina, a segunda espécie mais frequente no PESM, foi representada apenas por nove indivíduos na Ilha Anchieta e por 200 em Picinguaba. Estes dados sugerem que essas duas espécies podem atuar como bioindicadores de ambientes preservados, como sugerido para outras espécies de Euglossini. Por outro lado, alguns autores evidenciaram que Eg. cordata é uma espécie favorecida por ambientes perturbados, o que pode estar associado à sua alta abundância na Ilha Anchieta. Dados de literatura mostram que há um sinal evidente de perturbação ambiental, além da perda de espécies, é a dominância de algumas espécies. A Ilha Anchieta apresenta um longo histórico de ocupação humana e diversas espécies de plantas e animais foram introduzidos em seus domínios. / The Atlantic Forest is considered as one of the highest priorities for the conservation of biodiversity in the American continent. This biome is one of the eight biodiversity hotspots in the world and is characterized by high species diversity and endemism. Euglossini bees are restricted to the Neotropics, with a geographic range that extends from northern Mexico to the Córdoba Province in Argentine. Species from this tribe are abundant in humid and rainy tropical forests and in sub-tropical forests of Central and South America, where their diversity is high. Due to the high impact caused by human activities in the Atlantic Forest and the poor knowledge on its biodiversity, in the present study we assessed the community structure of the Euglossini in a coastal lowland area: Parque Estadual da Serra do Mar - Núcleo Picinguaba (PESM); and in an insular area: Parque Estadual da Ilha Anchieta (PEIA), Ubatuba, both located in northern São Paulo State, Brazil. PESM has an area of approximately 47.500 ha and almost all ecosystems of the Atlantic Forest are found within its domains. PEIA covers all the extension of the Anchieta Island (828 ha), about 600 m away from the continent. Sampling was carried out monthly, from August 2007 to July 2009, using artificial baits with 14 aromatic compounds to attract males, as well as by collecting individuals on flowers. One thousand five hundred and seventy-six specimens (73 females and 1,503 males), represented by 24 species were recorded. The most abundant species was Euglossa cordata (36.4%), followed by Euglossa iopoecila (13.9%) and Euglossa sapphirina (13.3%). Eighteen species were sampled on Anchieta Island and four of them were exclusive to this area; whereas 20 species were sampled in PESM and six of them were only recorded there. On Anchieta Island, E. cordata represented almost two thirds of the total species collected (63.2%). In Picinguaba, E. iopoecila (23.0%) and E. sapphirina (21.0%) were the dominant species. E. iopoecila, the most abundant species in the continental area, was not recorded on the island, and E. sapphirina, the second most frequent species in PESM, was represented only by nine individuals on Anchieta Island and by 200 in Picinguaba. Results suggest that these two species may act as bioindicators of preserved environments, as suggested for other Euglossini species. However, some authors evidenced that E. cordata is favored by disturbed environments, which may be associated with its high abundance on Anchieta Island. Other studies show that an evident sign of environmental perturbation, besides species loss, is the dominance of some species. Anchieta Island exhibits a long history of human occupation and several plant and animal species were introduced there.

A Mata Atlântica é considerada uma das grandes prioridades para a conservação de biodiversidade em todo o continente americano. Este bioma é um dos oito hotspots do planeta e caracteriza-se pelo alto grau de endemismo e pela alta diversidade de espécies que encerra. As abelhas Euglossini estão restritas à região Neotropical, com uma faixa de distribuição que se estende desde o Norte do México até a província de Córdoba, na Argentina. As espécies dessa tribo são abundantes em florestas tropicais úmidas/chuvosas e florestas subtropicais da América Central e América do Sul onde ocorrem em maior diversidade. Em virtude do alto impacto causado pelas ações humanas em áreas de Mata Atlântica e o pouco que se conhece sobre sua diversidade, este trabalho propõe um estudo geral sobre a estrutura das comunidades de espécies de Euglossini presentes em uma área de planície litorânea continental, Parque Estadual da Serra do Mar - Núcleo Picinguaba (PESM), e uma área insular, Parque Estadual da Ilha Anchieta (PEIA), no município de Ubatuba, norte de São Paulo, Brasil. O PESM abrange uma área de aproximadamente 47.500 hectares e quase todos os ecossitemas da Mata Atlântica são encontrados em seus domínios. O PEIA cobre toda a extensão da Ilha Anchieta (828 hectares), distante cerca de 600 m do continente. As coletas foram realizadas mensalmente, de Agosto/2007 a Julho/2009, com o uso de 14 compostos aromáticos utilizados como iscas artificiais para a atração de machos, além de indivíduos coletados em flores. Mil quinhentos e setenta e seis espécimes (73 fêmeas e 1503 machos), pertencentes a 24 espécies, foram registrados no presente trabalho. A espécie mais abundante foi Euglossa cordata (36,4%), seguida por Euglossa iopoecila (13,9%) e Euglossa sapphirina (13,3%). Dezoito espécies foram amostradas na Ilha Anchieta, sendo que quatro delas foram exclusivas desta área, ao passo que 20 espécies foram amostradas no PESM e seis delas foram registradas apenas neste local. Na Ilha Anchieta, Eg. cordata representou 63,2%, quase dois terços do total de espécies coletadas. Já em Picinguaba, Eg. iopoecila (23,0%) e Eg. sapphirina (21,0%) foram as duas espécies dominantes. A espécie Eg. iopoecila, a mais abundante na área continental, não foi registrada na llha e Eg. sapphirina, a segunda espécie mais frequente no PESM, foi representada apenas por nove indivíduos na Ilha Anchieta e por 200 em Picinguaba. Estes dados sugerem que essas duas espécies podem atuar como bioindicadores de ambientes preservados, como sugerido para outras espécies de Euglossini. Por outro lado, alguns autores evidenciaram que Eg. cordata é uma espécie favorecida por ambientes perturbados, o que pode estar associado à sua alta abundância na Ilha Anchieta. Dados de literatura mostram que há um sinal evidente de perturbação ambiental, além da perda de espécies, é a dominância de algumas espécies. A Ilha Anchieta apresenta um longo histórico de ocupação humana e diversas espécies de plantas e animais foram introduzidos em seus domínios. / The Atlantic Forest is considered as one of the highest priorities for the conservation of biodiversity in the American continent. This biome is one of the eight biodiversity hotspots in the world and is characterized by high species diversity and endemism. Euglossini bees are restricted to the Neotropics, with a geographic range that extends from northern Mexico to the Córdoba Province in Argentine. Species from this tribe are abundant in humid and rainy tropical forests and in sub-tropical forests of Central and South America, where their diversity is high. Due to the high impact caused by human activities in the Atlantic Forest and the poor knowledge on its biodiversity, in the present study we assessed the community structure of the Euglossini in a coastal lowland area: Parque Estadual da Serra do Mar - Núcleo Picinguaba (PESM); and in an insular area: Parque Estadual da Ilha Anchieta (PEIA), Ubatuba, both located in northern São Paulo State, Brazil. PESM has an area of approximately 47.500 ha and almost all ecosystems of the Atlantic Forest are found within its domains. PEIA covers all the extension of the Anchieta Island (828 ha), about 600 m away from the continent. Sampling was carried out monthly, from August 2007 to July 2009, using artificial baits with 14 aromatic compounds to attract males, as well as by collecting individuals on flowers. One thousand five hundred and seventy-six specimens (73 females and 1,503 males), represented by 24 species were recorded. The most abundant species was Euglossa cordata (36.4%), followed by Euglossa iopoecila (13.9%) and Euglossa sapphirina (13.3%). Eighteen species were sampled on Anchieta Island and four of them were exclusive to this area; whereas 20 species were sampled in PESM and six of them were only recorded there. On Anchieta Island, E. cordata represented almost two thirds of the total species collected (63.2%). In Picinguaba, E. iopoecila (23.0%) and E. sapphirina (21.0%) were the dominant species. E. iopoecila, the most abundant species in the continental area, was not recorded on the island, and E. sapphirina, the second most frequent species in PESM, was represented only by nine individuals on Anchieta Island and by 200 in Picinguaba. Results suggest that these two species may act as bioindicators of preserved environments, as suggested for other Euglossini species. However, some authors evidenced that E. cordata is favored by disturbed environments, which may be associated with its high abundance on Anchieta Island. Other studies show that an evident sign of environmental perturbation, besides species loss, is the dominance of some species. Anchieta Island exhibits a long history of human occupation and several plant and animal species were introduced there.

Pest insects cause great financial losses in the forest and food industry every year. To fight these pests industries have used insecticides, which are sometimes harmful to nature and humans. One potential way of avoiding insecticides is the use of integrated pest management based on insect communication, which would offer species-specific methods for protecting forest and food resources. Insects use chemicals known as semiochemicals for both intra- and interspecies communication. By learning how insects use these semio-chemicals to talk to each other we can eavesdrop and mimic their communication for our benefit. One research area dealing with these questions is chemical ecology, which is an interdisciplinary area as knowledge in chemistry and biology is required. Collaborations between groups within and outside of Sweden are essential in order to make progress in this field of research. This thesis presents the identification and synthesis of semiochemicals from several insect species, most of which are considered to be pests. Synthesised compounds have been sent to collaboration partners around Sweden and Europe for biological evaluations. Studies of the African butterfly, Bicyclus anynana, have unravelled particular biological phenomena that may aid in the understanding of the Bicyclus genus, though recognizing individual species variation is crucial. In 2008 the putative male sex pheromone of B. anynana was determined to consist of three compounds: hexadecanal, (Z)-9-tetradecenol and 6,10,14-trimethylpentadecan-2-ol, and the specific stereoisomer for 6,10,14-trimethylpentadecan-2-ol has been determined in this thesis. The ratio of 6,10,14-trimethylpentadecan-2-ol and the corresponding ketone were investigated for seventeen Bicyclus species (including B. anynana) that live in overlapping regions in Africa. The stereochemistry was determined for most of the species and may provide a way to chemically distinguish them. The orchid bees, Euglossa spp, are important pollinators of many orchids in Central America. Insight about pollination and conservation of endangered orchid species may be possible by gathering more information about the Euglossa genus. Males of the Euglossa genus have pouch-like structures on their hind legs where they store compounds collected from their surroundings. 6,10,14-Trimethyl-pentadecan-2-one is a common component of leg extracts from Euglossa imperialis, E. crassipunctata and E. allosticta, the specific stereochemistry of which has been determined in this thesis. Another, different compound was found in high amounts in E. viridissima and its structure has been elucidated; several synthetic pathways are under investigation to obtain the target compound. Bed bugs (Cimex lectularius and C. hemipterus) are an ectoparasite that feed on human blood, and the number of reported infestations of these parasites has increased considerably during the last decade. Two 5th instar nymph-specific compounds, 4-oxo-hexenal and 4-oxo-octenal, were identified and synthesised. Utilizing domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) in the identification of bed bug infestations has become popular during recent years. Their training is usually conducted using live bed bugs, however this thesis describes an alternative method of teaching dogs to find infestations. This alternative method is based on synthetic compounds and dogs trained in this manner have achieved a high positive indication rate. Two species of the tiny, Acacia leaf-eating insect pests in Australia known as thrips, Kladothrips nicolsoni and K. rugosus, have been investigated by means of larval extracts and have been shown to contain large amount of (Z)-3-dodecenoic acid which was synthesised and tested in bioassays. Fruit flies are common pests on fruit in almost every private household. Even though fruit flies has been investigated extensively, their chemical communication has not been completely elucidated. (Z)-4-undecenal was identified as a compound emitted by females, it was synthesised in high stereoisomeric purity and evaluated in biological assays. / FORE