Pollen harvest by Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in the Dourados region, Mato Grosso do Sul state (Brazil)

Abstract

We present data on the pollen harvest by Apismellifera L. at a central-western Brazil site not yet studied. Corbiculae pollen loads were collected during one year in front of the hive, acetolysed and slides mounted for optical microscopy. Identification followed comparisons with a local pollen collection. Forty-two pollen types were utilized by the bee; the most important families were Myrtaceae, Asteraceae, Euphorbiaceae, Brassicaceae and Poaceae. The genus/species level ranking of relative importance showed Eucalyptus (19%), Raphanus raphanistrum (13%), Poaceae type 2 (7.5%), Jatropha cf. gossypiifolia (7%) and Sapium glandulatum (6.5%). Overall, the majority of pollen types (80%) were not abundantly harvested, and a minority (4%) reached values of 10%. Given that the study area has cultivated plants and not natural vegetation, we indicate most of the identified species as manageable and point out that weedy vegetation can be an important food source for bees since it frequently occurred in the pollen spectra even within a totally cultivated area.