Production of new colonies of Melipona subnitida Ducke (Hymenoptera: Apidae) by reclamation of excess virgin queens

Abstract

One of the limitations to greater expansion of Meliponiculture and conservation efforts of most stingless bee species is related to the low reproductive rate of colonies, both in the wild and in meliponaries. However, in Melipona, colonies regularly produce an excessive number of virgin queens which are eliminated by the workers. Here, we investigated the use of the excess of virgin queens produced in colonies of Melipona subnitida to produce new colonies using the minimum resources possible from the mother colonies. Virgin queens were evaluated for the acceptance by workers and the establishment of new colonies; the main behaviors they presented and their possible connection to physiological responses were recorded. After that, we evaluated the mating success of the accepted queens and the establishment of new colonies in meliponaries in different environments and with different contexts of male production. The results showed that the age of the virgin queens is not a limiting factor for their acceptance by the workers but the existence of clusters of males is essential for the fertilization and establishment of the new colonies. Under these conditions, the method had a 36.7% success rate, roughly producing a new colony for every three queens that would have been wasted. The method proved to be promising for producing a large number of new colonies descending from virgin queens that are normally eliminated, with little use of resources and in a short period of time. Although only tested on M. subnitida, it can potentially be used for any species of Melipona.