Abstract
Exocrine glands play important role in social organization of insects, such as caste and inter-caste differentiation. Due their functional and structural plasticity, morphological studies on such glands contribute to better understanding the biology of social bees. Therefore, the aim of the study was to characterize the sequence of the post-embryonic development of intramandibular glands of Friesella schrottkyi (Friese, 1900) (Hymenoptera: Apidae) workers using histological and histochemical analyses. The mandibles of pupae at different developmental stages and newly emerged adults were analyzed. The intramandibular glands of F. schrottkyi presented two types: class I glands, in the mandible epidermis and class III glands, inside the mandible cavity that open onto external surface. The intramandibular glands of F. schrottkyi developed during the transition from the prepupae to the white-eyed pupae, as shown by the morphological changes. Black-eyed pupae of F. schrottkyi presented fully developed intramandibular glands.
Highlights
Stingless bee workers show plasticity of tasks they perform during their life, which can change according to the demands of the colony (Van Bethem et al, 1995)
Histological analysis showed variations in the mandible according to the developmental phase of F. schrottkyi pupae
The epidermis of mandibles in white‐ and pinkeyed pupae was formed by multiple cell layers with different morphology in the mandible regions
Summary
Stingless bee workers show plasticity of tasks they perform during their life, which can change according to the demands of the colony (Van Bethem et al, 1995). The ability to perform different tasks in the colony is related to the worker bee age and morpho-physiology of the exocrine glands. The morphology of these glands and the chemical composition of their secretions are parameters to analyze the functional plasticity of these glands (Cruz-Landim & Abdalla, 2002). 1. Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), Instituto de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde, Campus Rio Paranaíba. Rodovia MG‐230, km 7, CEP 38810‐000, Rio Paranaíba, MG, Brasil. 2. Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), Departamento de Biologia Geral, Campus Viçosa. Avenida Peter Henry Rolfs, s/no, Campus Universitário, CEP 36570‐900, Viçosa, MG, Brasil
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