Bees as pollinators in Brazil - USP

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grandiflorum), the pollination requirements
are being studied (see table 1).
Coevolution between local flora and stingless
bees should occur in high diverse habitats.
Despite of their generalist use of floral
resources, stingless bees show floral preferences
(Ramalho, et al., 1990; Biesmeijer, et al.,
2005; Biesmeijer & Slaa, 2006). It is necessary
to improve this knowledge in order to determine
preferences and the main plants indicated
as food source for their successful
breeding, as well as for using in habitat
restoration programs.
A huge problem for Brazilian stingless
bees breeders and for capacity building activities
is that relevant literature is in English or not
easily available; most bee species have not
been studied yet. A recommendation is to
make available, in Portuguese, a synthesis of
the present knowledge, written for different
stakeholders, and to provide basic knowledge
needed for rear them. The WebBee (Saraiva, et
al., 2004) was constructed in order to be our
infoway in this task.
Considering the high biodiversity of stingless
bees, and the new meliponiculture regulation
for research and for beekeeping (CONA-
MA_346, 2004), it is necessary to improve the
development of breeding techniques, in order
to provide bees for research and for meliponiculture.
Nests can be obtained by using trap
nests in nature; a nest census and a bait-trap
survey in natural and agricultural areas for stingless
bees is also a priority for investigation. A
recent research developed in Sarawak, Asia,
showed the effects of human disturbance on a
stingless bee community in a tropical rainforest,
as a result of changes in resources availability
(Eltz, et al., 2002 and Eltz, et al., 2003;
Samejima, et al., 2004). Such changes in the
bee community may affect the reproductive
success of plants and ultimately forest composition.
Nests sites are considered as essential
resources, and have some requirements, as
specialization in use of logs of some plant
species or diameters at breast height bigger
than 50cm. This has implications for reforestation
programs as well for the sustainable use of
forest and the conservation of stingless bees,
important native pollinators (Venturieri, 2004).
The use of stingless bees for pollination
purposes should consider the settlement of
corridors between patches of native vegetation
for keeping native populations of pollinators
as well as trees for nesting and flowers
for food (nectar and pollen). As agriculture
is increasing in Brazil, the land management
of surrounding agricultural areas is also
very important. Finally, stingless bees could
be excellent pollinators to be used by small
farmers (family growers) because they do not
sting, are easy to manage, and are appropriate
to small lands and cheap to rearing.
Besides that, some small farmers have the
traditional knowledge to rearing them, using
their honey as medicine. They need to learn
how to manage them for pollination and
conservation purposes.
State of art
Stingless bees as greenhouses
pollinators
In 1988, Luci Rolandi Bego, from São Paulo
University, went to Japan with a grant of
Brazilian Academy of Sciences to work with Y.
Maeta on the use of stingless bees as pollinators
in strawberry greenhouses. She carried
with her a colony of Nannotrigona testaceicornis,
a colony of Plebeia droryana and one
of Tetragonisca angustula, in rational hives,
chosen by chance among the other species
available at São Paulo University Bee
Laboratory, where they were know to be very
strong. Nannotrigona testaceicornis was test-