Teste de alimentos alternativos para Melipona scutellaris L., 1811 (Hymenoptera: apidae) e seu efeito sobre o desenvolvimento da colmeia

Abstract

Native bees have been prominent recently, playing a major role in family farming, preserving biodiversity and as a promising agribusiness activity. This research was carried out in the meliponario of the do Núcleo de Pesquisa em Apicultura e Meliponicultura (NUPAM). Sixteen colonies of M. scutellaris L., nestled in boxes (PNN), were evaluated biweekly for four months in the city of Areia-PB. The T1 units (controls) did not receive any supplementation; the T2 units received 80g of demerara sugar syrup (50%) plus a complex of soybean and corn flour; the T3 units received proteinic food plus dextrose sugar syrup at 70% and the T4 units received corn-based food plus syrup mix at 50 and 70%. The supply happened simultaneously in the treatments. For each colony, the following parameters were evaluated: Number of Cubes (NC), Number of honeycombs (NF), Average Diameter of honeycombs (DM), Height of honeycombs (HF), Height of Creation Cells and estimates of Colony Population (POP). The present study, indicates the acceptance of the alternative foods for feeding of bees. For the farinaceous foods, in the first 15 days, the food offered was consumed in a decreasing way, and after the 15 days of the experiment, the consumption increased over time, indicating a greater consumption for T3 and T4. When evaluating the DM parameter, the statistical results showed a significant difference for repetition 6 (146, 33mm) with the lowest value for repetition 5 (105.06 mm). When the parameter HC was evaluated in the repetitions over time, a significant difference was found, with repetition 7 (11.6194 mm) representing the largest pups and replicates 4 and 5 (10, 9831 and 10,8019 mm), obtaining the smaller hatchlings of the bee Melipona scutellaris. There is a relationship between the NC and the POP, and it could be predicted the number of individuals when the population of a beehive is known. According to the results, the proportion of individuals for the population is validated in 66%. This fact is unprecedented in the literature. It can be concluded that, food supplements for honey bees Melipona scutellaris, allows a relatively constant maintenance of the number of pups and population; and increase the size of the individuals over time. It can also concluded that, over time, the biometric parameters present statistical difference for food supplementation.