Pollen loads of eucalypt and other pollen types in birds in NW Spain

In order to adopt correct conservation strike plans to maintain bee pollination activity it is necessary to know the species' resource utilisation and requirements. We investigated the floral resources and the nesting requirements of the eusocial beeLasioglossum malachurumKirby at various sites in a Mediterranean landscape. Analysis of bees' pollen loads showed that Compositae was the more exploited family, although interpopulations differences appeared in the pollen types used. From 5 to 7 pollen types were used by bees, but only as few as 1–1.9 per load. Variations of the pollen spectrum through the annual nesting cycle were conspicuous. At all sites, bees nested in horizontal ground areas with high soil hardness, low acidity, and rare superficial stones. On the other side, the exploited soil was variable in soil granulometry (although always high in % of silt or sand) and it was moderately variable in content of organic matter and highly variable in vegetation cover. Creation of ground patches with these characteristics in proximity of both cultivated and natural flowering fields may successfully promote colonization of new areas by this bee.

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Botanical profile of bee pollen from the southern coastal region of Bahia, Brazil

Acta Botanica Brasilica ◽

10.1590/s0102-33062010000300028 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 24 (3) ◽

pp. 862-867 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Marcos da Costa Dórea ◽

Jaílson Santos de Novais ◽

Francisco de Assis Ribeiro dos Santos

Keyword(s):

Apis Mellifera ◽

Plant Species ◽

Coastal Region ◽

Botanical Origin ◽

Mimosa Pudica ◽

Bee Pollen ◽

Pollen Loads ◽

Pollen Types ◽

Pollen Sources ◽

Forest Biome

This paper aims to identify the botanical origin of pollen loads collected by Apis mellifera L. in Canavieiras municipality, Bahia state. It provides a list of polliniferous plant species from the Atlantic Forest biome that are important for the development of regional apiculture. Using the acetolysis method, 35 bee-pollen samples were analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively. Results showed that pollen types Elaeis (23.99%), Mimosa pudica (22.78%) and Cecropia (13.68%) were the most abundant among the samples. These also showed the highest relative frequencies of the material studied and were important pollen sources for bees in the study area.

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Chemical composition, botanical evaluation and screening of radical scavenging activity of collected pollen by the stingless bees Melipona rufiventris (Uruçu-amarela)

Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências ◽

10.1590/s0001-37652009000200003 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 81 (2) ◽

pp. 173-178 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Tania M.S. Silva ◽

Celso A. Camara ◽

Antonio C.S. Lins ◽

Maria de Fátima Agra ◽

Eva M.S. Silva ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Chemical Composition ◽

Stingless Bees ◽

Radical Scavenging Activity ◽

Radical Scavenging ◽

Northeastern Brazil ◽

Scavenging Activity ◽

Dominant Type ◽

Etoac Extract ◽

Pollen Loads ◽

Pollen Types

Stingless bees in Brazil are indigenous and found all over the country. Bee pollen is used for its nutritional value in the human diet. It is made up of natural flower pollen mixed with nectar and bee secretions. In order to evaluate the chemical composition, free radical scavenging activity, and botanical origin, sample of pollen loads from stingless bee, Melipona rufiventris (Uruçu amarela) was studied. The EtOAc extract of pollen of Melipona rufiventris yielded the following compounds: p-hydroxycinnamic acid, dihydroquercetin, isorhamnetin, isorhamnetin3-O-(6"-O-E-p-coumaroyl)-β-D-glucopyranoside, luteolin, and quercetin. This is the first report of the isolation of isorhamnetin3-O-(6"O-E-p-coumaroyl)β-D-glucopyranoside from pollen. The free radicalscavenging activities of different solvent extracts of pollen were determined using DPPH assay. This activity decreases in the order: EtOAc>EtOH>Hexane extract. It appears that the EtOAc extract of the pollen is a good scavenger of active oxygen species. The botanical evaluation of pollen loads showed the composition by two pollen types, with the dominant type (97.3%) being Scopariadulcis (L.) (Scrophulariaceae) and the minor one Senna obtusifolia (L.) Irwin & Barneby (Fabaceae). This suggests a specific foraging behavior in Melipona rufiventris bees, even in an environment with such a rich botanical diversity as the Northeastern Brazil.

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Characterization of honeys by melissopalynology and statistical analysis

Canadian Journal of Plant Science ◽

10.4141/p00-187 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 82 (1) ◽

pp. 75-82 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Baudilio Herrero ◽

Rosa María Valencia-Barrera ◽

Roberto San Martín ◽

Valentín Pando

Keyword(s):

Point Of View ◽

Data Matrix ◽

Cytisus Scoparius ◽

Nw Spain ◽

Mentha Aquatica ◽

Rubus Ulmifolius ◽

Pollen Types ◽

Plant Families ◽

Lavandula Latifolia

We analyzed pollen from 89 honey samples, collected in León and Palencia provinces (NW Spain). According to their pollen spectra, 46 were considered monofloral. The most abundant monofloral honeys were Erica types followed by Castanea, Centaurea, Reseda and Helianthus. One hundred and forty-two different pollen types were recorded, belonging to 47 families. Fifty-five of them reached percentages over 3% in at least one sample, while the other 87 types never exceeded 3% in any of the 89 samples. The families that were present in the highest number of samples were Fabaceae, Rosaceae, Cistaceae and Asteraceae. Plant families that had the highest percentages were Fabaceae, Ericaceae, Asteraceae, and Rosaceae. The pollen types that appeared in most samples were Rubus ulmifolius (73 samples), Cytisus scoparius (70) and Mentha aquatica (62); the pollen types that had the highest relative abundance were Erica arborea, Lotus corniculatus, Cytisus scoparius. The pollen types of the Ericaceae family, Jasione montana, and Lavandula latifolia types could be used as indicators of the origin of honeys among five zones in the area studied. The use of cluster and correlation statistical analyses proved useful in characterizing honey samples from a geographical and botanical point of view. The honey samples were divided into four classes according to the data matrix of presence/absence, and into seven classes according to absolute frequencies of pollen types in the samples. Key words: Honey, palynology, melissopalynology, botanical origin, characterization

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Oligolectisme et décalage phénologique entre plante hôte et pollinisateur : étude de deux espèces printanières psammophiles, Colletes cunicularius (L.) (Hymenoptera, Colletidae) et Andrena vaga (Panzer) (Hymenoptera, Andrenidae)

Osmia ◽

10.47446/osmia3.7 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 3 ◽

pp. 23-27

Author(s):

Maryse Vanderplanck ◽

Étienne Bruneau ◽

Denis Michez

Keyword(s):

Host Plant ◽

Microscopic Analysis ◽

Early Spring ◽

Plant Association ◽

Pollen Loads ◽

Pollen Types ◽

Plante Hôte ◽

Two Populations ◽

Ground Nesting ◽

Phenological Shift

Oligolectism and phenological shift between host plant and pollinator: study of two psammophilic spring species, Colletes cunicularius (L.) (Hymenoptera, Colletidae) and Andrena vaga (Panzer) (Hymenoptera, Andrenidae). - Colletes cunicularius (L.) and Andrena vaga (Panzer), both vernal solitary ground nesting bees, have been reported to feed strictly on Salix (Salicaceae) (oligolectic behavior). However a recent study has shown that Colletes cunicularius is able to shift on different plants, at least in the studied sites in Germany. In this study we investigated the extent to which this behavior applies to other regions within the distribution range of these bee species. We analysed the host-plant association of two populations in Belgium. Pollen loads and brood cells of both species have been investigated by optical microscopic analysis to estimate the proportion of willow pollen. Andrena vaga females collect pollen only on Salix but pollen loads of Colletes cunicularius sometimes contain other pollen types in agreement with a previously study. It is observed that the first nest cells made by C. cunicularius in early spring contain exclusively willow pollen. Towards the end of willow blooming, Colletes cunicularius females change their floral choice by foraging on other pollen types.

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Pollen harvest features of the Central Amazonian bee Scaptotrigona fulvicutis Moure 1964 (Apidae: Meliponinae), in Brazil

Acta Botanica Brasilica ◽

10.1590/s0102-33062007000100002 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

pp. 11-20 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

Antonio Carlos Marques-Souza ◽

Maria Lúcia Absy ◽

Warwick Estevam Kerr

Keyword(s):

Plant Species ◽

Secondary Forest ◽

Pollen Grains ◽

Fruit Trees ◽

Pollen Loads ◽

Pollen Types ◽

Large Groups

Over a twelve-month period, pollen loads transported by Scaptotrigona fulvicutis Moure 1964 were collected from the workers corbiculae right after the hive entrance closure in an area of old secondary forest mixed with some exotic fruit trees and ornamentals. Once the pollen grains were identified, their monthly frequency in the samples and grouping by botanical family established that Mimosaceae, Myrtaceae and Sapindaceae were the most frequently visited. The workers harvested the pollen from 97 plant species distributed in 73 genera and 36 families, mostly: Stryphnodendron guianense (Aubl.) Benth. in April (57,37%) and Schefflera morototoni (Aubl.) Frodin in May (54,73%). The harvested pollen types abundance matrix showed that there was little species dissimilarity between the months, which resulted in the formation of two large groups.

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Análise do nicho trófico e da influência das precipitações no forrageamento de Melipona eburnea Friese (Apidae: Meliponina) criadas no Acre, Brasil

EntomoBrasilis ◽

10.12741/ebrasilis.v11i1.711 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 13-19

Author(s):

Francisco Cildomar Da Silva Correia ◽

Rui Carlos Peruquetti ◽

Marcos Gonçalves Ferreira

Keyword(s):

Native Plants ◽

Pollen Grains ◽

Trophic Niche ◽

Flowering Plants ◽

Pollen Loads ◽

General Behavior ◽

Pollen Types ◽

Average Precipitation ◽

Rainfall Volume

Resumo. O presente trabalho teve como objetivo identificar plantas utilizadas por Melipona eburnea Friese para coleta de pólen e verificar a influência das precipitações no forrageamento dessa espécie. Para isso, realizou-se duas coletas semanais, de outubro de 2015 a junho de 2016, em três colônias de M. eburnea. Abelhas operárias transportando cargas de pólen foram capturadas na entrada de suas colônias, utilizando-se rede entomológica. As cargas de pólen foram retiradas das corbículas das operárias com o auxílio de pinça e, posteriormente, levadas ao Laboratório para serem analisadas. Os grãos de pólen foram fotomicrografados e identificados através da comparação com o pólen das plantas em floração na área estudada. Os dados foram obtidos a partir do número de grãos de pólen nas amostras com a média de precipitação para cada mês. Identificou-se 44 espécies botânicas, distribuídas em 18 famílias, as principais foram: Fabaceae, Myrtaceae, Euphorbiaceae e Arecaceae. Foi observado que a maior quantidade de pólen fornecido para M. eburnea ocorreu no período de menor volume pluviométrico. M. eburnea apresenta comportamento generalista na coleta de recursos polínicos, alterando seu nicho trófico, de acordo com a intensidade de floração. Plantas nativas representam a principal fonte de pólen para M. eburnea.Analysis of the trophic niche and the influence of the precipitations on the foraging of Melipona eburnea Friese (Apidae: Meliponina) created in Acre, Brazil Abstract. The present work had as objective to identify plants used to collect pollen per Melipona eburnea Friese and to verify the influence of the precipitations in the foraging of this specie. For tath, two weekly collections were carried out, from October 2015 to June 2016, in three colonies of M. eburnea. Worker bees carrying pollen loads were captured at the entrance of their colonies, using an entomological net. The pollen loads were removed from the workers' corbulas with the aid of forceps and then taken to the laboratory for analysis. The pollen grains were photomicrographs and identified by comparison with the pollen of the flowering plants in the studied area. The data were obtained from the number of pollen grains in the samples with the average precipitation for each month. It was identified 44 pollen types distributed in 18 families, the main ones being: Fabaceae, Myrtaceae, Euphorbiaceae and Arecaceae. It was observed that the highest amount of pollen supplied to M. eburnea occurred in the period of lower rainfall volume. M. eburnea presents general behavior in the collection of pollinic resources. Native plants represent the main source of pollen for M. eburnea.

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Flower Constancy of Bumblebees – The Case of Onobrychis pindicola (Fabaceae) Pollinators

Journal of Apicultural Science ◽

10.2478/jas-2018-0005 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 62 (1) ◽

pp. 135-140

Author(s):

Ekaterina Kozuharova

Keyword(s):

Functional Morphology ◽

Food Choice ◽

Flower Morphology ◽

High Mountain ◽

Endemic Plant ◽

Flower Constancy ◽

Pollen Loads ◽

Mountain Habitats ◽

Pollen Types ◽

Very High

Abstract Pollination in high mountain habitats is an important ecosystem service in climate change conditions. The aim of this study was to use pollen load analysis to assess flower constancy and foraging choices of bumblebees foraging on Onobrychis pindicola, a high-mountain endemic plant. The flower constancy to the foraging source O. pindicola was very high - over half of the bumblebees had pure Onobrychis-type pollen loads. In the mixed pollen loads we found one to seven pollen types other than Onobrychis-type and the functional flower morphology was different from the flag type. Some were gullet while others were dish/bowl functional morphology type. Thus the theory/belief that once discovering the flag blossom as a foraging resource bumblebees tended to visit other plants with such functional morphology was rejected. An abundance of plants did not determine food choice. We could not trace an obvious pattern of the bumblebees’ preference to functional blossom morphology but they were attracted to dish-bowl blossoms.

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Apis mellifera pollen loads to understand the pollen foraging pattern used for apicultural practice in a potentially agricultural belt in Bengal, India

Revista de Biología Tropical ◽

10.15517/rbt.v66i4.32697 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 66 (4) ◽

Author(s):

Tripti Nandi ◽

Prakash Karmakar

Keyword(s):

Apis Mellifera ◽

West Bengal ◽

Monsoon Season ◽

Accurate Determination ◽

Plant Family ◽

Pollen Loads ◽

Pollen Types ◽

Different Types ◽

Foraging Pattern

For accurate determination of polleniferous taxa vis-a-vis floral fidelity of Apis mellifera L. in North 24 Pargana, West Bengal, we carried out pollen analyses of individual corbicular pollen loads collected from four apiaries during 2015-2016. Among the 2 434 analyzed loads, 72.97 % were unifloral type, 19.0 % bifloral and 8.10 % were multifloral in pollen composition. We identified 43 different types of palynomorphs belonged to 28 botanical families. Major polleniferous plant species include: Alangium salviifolium, Borassus flabellifer, Brassica nigra, Coriandrum sativum, Croton bonplandianum, Cyanotis axillaris, Luffa cylindrica, Neolamarckia cadamba, Phoenix sylvestris, Poa gangetica, Sesamum indicum and Trema orientalis. Among them, T. orientalis is newly reported from West Bengal especially during June to August (monsoon season). The plant family provided maximum number of loads was Arecaceae (20.91 %), followed by Brassicaceae (16.2 %), Poaceae (6.70 %), Pedaliaceae (6.38 %), Apiaceae (6.16 %) and Fabaceae (5.38 %). Month wise highest number of pollen diversity were obtained during March (13 pollen types) and a minimum of 6 types in November. The present investigation will help the beekeepers to maintain their hives in the region for sustainable apicultural practices.

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Recurso polínico y ciclo estacional de Thygater aethiops (Hymenoptera: Apidae) en un ambiente urbano (Bogotá-Colombia)

Revista de Biología Tropical ◽

10.15517/rbt.v64i3.20909 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 64 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Mario Simon Pinilla-Gallego ◽

Valentina Nieto ◽

Guiomar Nates-Parra

Keyword(s):

Urban Areas ◽

Urban Environments ◽

Floral Resources ◽

Foraging Activity ◽

Ulex Europaeus ◽

Pollen Loads ◽

Pollen Types ◽

Native Bee ◽

The City ◽

Dry And Rainy Seasons

Thygater aethiops is a native bee that can be found in parks and gardens in diverse urban areas such as those in the city of Bogotá (Colombia). However, little is known about its biology as well as ecological adaptations to urban areas. This study aimed to describe the seasonal cycle and daily foraging activities of T. aethiops, as well as identify the pollen resources used by this bee over a year in a population nesting in an aggregation in the “Parque Nacional Enrique Olaya Herrera” in Bogotá. Changes in the nest activity were monitored weekly by counting the number of active nests in the aggregation between December/2012 and February/2014. To determine the daily foraging activity, the numbers of bees entering their nests over a period of 10 minutes every hour between 8:00 and 14:00 h were recorded. Females with pollen loads entering to their nest were captured weekly, between September/2012 and August/2013, and their pollen loads analyzed. Three nesting peaks occurred after the precipitation peaks, but the number of active nests was not correlated with precipitation. The nesting activities stopped in a large number of the active nests (20-50 % of nests) after an anthropic disturbance was registered in the nesting area. Bees forage for nectar and pollen between 8:00 and 14:00 h, with a peak at 10:00 h. Daily foraging activity changed during the study period due to anthropic disturbance. There was not a significant relationship between air temperature and the number of females entering their nests. Foraging activities did not change between the dry and rainy seasons. A total of 26 pollen types were found in 169 pollen loads. Ulex europaeus (Fabaceae) and Solanum laxum (Solanaceae) were the most abundant plants represented on the pollen load across the study period. According to these results, T. aethiops would be considered a mesolectic species. The ability of T. aethiops to use different pollen resources both native and exotic, as well as to presumably recover its population after disturbances, are characteristics that may have allowed this bee to adapt to urban environments. Knowledge on the floral resources as well as other biological features of this bee species is important to promote its conservation in urban areas.

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