Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1966. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Bibliography: l. 71-74.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2009. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vi, 50 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-17T14:55:16Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 1302187 bytes, checksum: c5e711d7d5aae70cd68adbb071c9becf (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-02-25 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / Terrestrial ecosystems, solitary bees and wasps play important roles as pollinators, predators and parasites. Most part of the life of these Hymenoptera is designed to aspects related to nesting, including the search of the nest site, nest construction and food collection to rear the larvae. However, in natural environments the nests of these insects are difficult to find. A solution to this problem, at least for some species, is the use of artificial burrows in the field (trap nests). Using trap nests it is possible to collect standardized samples and to study the biology of some species. Thus, the community of solitary bees and wasps, nesting in trap nests was evaluated using parameters such as richness, diversity and nest abundance in two different agroecosystems of the state of Pernambuco, northeastern Brazil: sugarcane monoculture and polyculture. Moreover, the natural history and nesting biology of a bee species (Megachile dentipes) collected in the trap nests was studied. In this study, the main aspects of life history (seasonality, diameter of the nests, sex ratio, parasitism, development time) and nesting biology (nest architecture, nesting behavior, larval diet) was studied. Insects were sampled using the technique of trap nests, which consisted of 1) cardboard tubes inserted into blocks of wood of different diameters (4, 6, 8 and 10 mm), and 2) wooden planks, drilled lengthwise (5, 6, 8, 10 and 12 mm in diameter) and covered with a transparent plastic sheet (observation-nests). In each agroecosystem 3.360 cardboard tubes were available for nesting during one year (June/2009 to May/2010) and 1000 holes of observationnests during five months (October/2009 to February/2010). In the monoculture a total of 259 nests, 86 (33.2%) build by bees and 173 (66.8%) by wasps were sampled. Five species of bees were sampled, and Megachile dentipes was the most abundant bee species in the sugarcane (n = 76; 85%). In the polyculture area, 411 nests were collected, being 254 (61.8%) of bees and 157 (38.2%) of wasps. In this environment, 14 spp. nesting bee species were recorded. The leaf-cutter bee Megachile dentipes was also the most abundant (n = 117 nests, 46%). The abundance of bee nests, species richness and diversity of bees and wasps was significantly higher in the polyculture area compared to monoculture area. It is suggested that plant richness is a determining factor in the occurrence of the species. However, other factors such as distance from forest fragments and the use of herbicides and burning, might have influence in the low richness and diversity of bees and wasps in the area with sugarcane monoculture. Regarding Megachile dentipes it was shown that it is an polilectic species, collecting pollen from a wide spectrum pollen from mainly five botanical families: Asteraceae, Rubiaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Mimosaceae and Scrophulariaceae. This species showed a clear preference for nesting in the dry periods of the year in both studied areas, with peaks in October and December. Furthermore, this species had several generations throughout the year (multivoltine). It was demonstrated experimentally that recognition of the cavities by females is determined by the nest position in the blocks. Probably, chemical signals (marking the cavity) are not used, at least in the initial recognition of the nests. Nest structure of M. dentipes differs from most species because the lining of the brood cell is made from chewed leaves unlike the other species that involve the brood cells with whole leaves not chewed.. Biological and ecological characteristics of M. dentipes, as e.g. abundance and poliletia, makes this species a good candidate for management programs aimed at pollination, but further studies are necessary for that purpose. / Nos ecossistemas terrestres, abelhas e vespas solitárias desempenham essenciais papéis como polinizadores, predadores e parasitas. Grande parte da vida das fêmeas desses himenopteros é destinada à nidificação, como busca pelo local do ninho, construção do ninho e coleta do alimento larval. Contudo, os ninhos desses insetos em ambientes naturais são difíceis de serem encontrados. Uma solução para este problema, pelo menos para algumas espécies, é a utilização de cavidades artificiais no campo (ninhosarmadilha), uma vez que amostragens dos ninhos podem ser realizadas de forma padronizada em diferentes ambientes, além de fornecerem dados acerca da biologia das espécies capturadas. Diante disso, a comunidade de abelhas e vespas solitárias nidificantes em ninhos armadilha foi avaliada a partir de parâmetros como riqueza, diversidade e abundância de ninhos em dois agroecossistemas em Pernambuco: monocultura canavieira e sistema de policultura. Além disso, foi estudada a história natural e biologia de nidificação da espécie de abelha (Megachile dentipes) mais abundante nos ninhos-armadilha. Neste estudo foram avaliados os principais aspectos relacionados à história de vida (sazonalidade, razão sexual, parasitismo, tempo de desenvolvimento) e biologia de nidificação (arquitetura do ninho, comportamento de nidificação, dieta larval) de M. dentipes. Os insetos foram amostrados através da técnica de ninhos-armadilha, que consistiu de 1) tubos de cartolina inseridos em blocos de madeira de diferentes diâmetros (4, 6, 8 e 10 mm), e 2) pranchas de madeira, perfuradas longitudinalmente (5, 6, 8, 10 e 12 mm de diâmetro), cobertas com uma lâmina plástica transparente (ninhos-observação). Em cada agroecossistema estudado, foram disponibilizados para nidificação 3.360 tubos de cartolina ao longo de um ano (junho/2009 a maio/2010), e 1.000 cavidades de ninhos-observação durante cinco meses (outubro/2009 a fevereiro/2010). Um total de 259 ninhos, sendo 86 (33,2%) de abelhas e 173 (66,8%) de vespas foi coletado nas armadilhas instaladas na monocultura. Foram amostradas 5 espécies de abelhas, dentre elas, Megachile dentipes, a espécie de abelha mais abundante no canavial (n=76; 85%). Na área com policultura, foram coletados 411 ninhos, sendo 254 (61,8%) de abelhas e 157 (38,2%) de vespas. Neste ambiente, foram registradas 14 spp. de abelhas nidificantes ninhos armadilha. Mais uma vez, a espécie de abelha corta folha Megachile dentipes foi a mais abundante em número de ninhos (n=117; 46%). A abundância de ninhos de abelhas e a riqueza e diversidade de espécies de abelhas e vespas nidificantes em ninhos-armadilha foi significativamente maior em área de policultura quando comparada à monocultura canavieira. É sugerido que a riqueza florística de cada área seja um fator determinante na ocorrência das espécies. Contudo, fatores como a distância de fragmentos de mata e a utilização de herbicidas e queimadas, podem ter colaborado para uma baixa riqueza e diversidade de abelhas e vespas na área com monocultura canavieira. Quanto à espécie Megachile dentipes, observou-se que trata-se de uma espécie polilética, que coleta pólen de um amplo espectro polínico envolvendo, principalmente, cinco famílias botânicas: Asteraceae, Rubiaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Mimosaceae e Scrophulariaceae. Esta espécie mostrou uma clara preferência em fundar ninhos nos períodos mais secos do ano, em ambas as áreas estudadas, com picos de nidificação em outubro e dezembro. Além disso, apresentou várias gerações ao longo do ano (multivoltina). Foi demonstrado experimentalmente que o reconhecimento das cavidades pelas fêmeas baseia-se na posição em que o orifício se encontra no bloco de ninhos-armadilha. Provavelmente, não estão envolvidos sinais químicos (marcação da cavidade) ao menos no reconhecimento inicial dos ninhos. A estrutura do ninho de M. dentipes difere da maioria das espécies descritas até o momento, pois o revestimento da célula de cria é feito com folhas trituradas (manipuladas), diferentemente das demais espécies que envolvem as células de cria com folhas inteiras não trituradas. Características biológicas e ecológicas de M. dentipes, como e.g. abundância e polilectia, tornam esta espécie uma boa candidata a programas de manejo visando a polinização, embora sejam necessários mais estudos direcionados a essa finalidade.

Over the last several decades, the use of solitary bees as an alternative to honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) for pollination of commercial crops has increased, in part as a response to ongoing problems faced by commercial honey bee populations. Two solitary bee species have exhibited great commercial potential: the blue orchard bee, Osmia lignaria Say, and the alfalfa leafcutting bee, Megachile rotundata Fabricius (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae). However, growth of O. lignaria and M. rotundata populations is limited in commercial systems, mainly due to low establishment of females at provided nesting sites, possibly due to mortality, dispersal, or other causes. Rough handling of pre-emergent bees may possibly contribute to post-emergence dispersal in O. lignaria. The current work addressed this hypothesis by using shaking as a proxy for rough handling. However, shaken bees did not establish fewer nests than unshaken bees. Therefore, commercial fruit growers using O. lignaria as pollinators should be able to remove cocoons from their nests as part of their management plan, without fear of increasing bee dispersal. When searching for a nest site, M. rotundata females are known to be attracted to previously used nest materials. The current work verified the attraction of M. rotundata females to old conspecific nests. It also sought to determine which nest components were most attractive to females. It was found that all components were equally attractive. It may be useful to establish these species' learning abilities in a laboratory setting. The current work attempted to design a conditioning protocol for solitary bees. Initially, a method utilizing the proboscis extension reflex was sought. However, O. lignaria and M. rotundata did not reflexively extend their proboscises upon antennal stimulation with sucrose solution. Therefore, another method of conditioning was implemented. Bees were conditioned to respond to floral odors in a feeding bioassay. Results are compared for both species, as well as for males and females. The research completed for this dissertation may provide helpful information for commercial managers of solitary bees seeking to decrease both bee dispersal and the incidence of disease and parasites.

No description available.

Measuring the diversity of bees was provided in two rapeseed fields (Dešenice, Miletice) in western Bohemia, where various species of bees were caught at eight different locations during two periods (March - April, May June). The bees were collected by using Moerickeho cups (yellow traps) with a concentrated solution of water and detergent.