The sharing of male production among workers and queens in Scaptotrigona depilis (Moure, 1942) (Apidae, Meliponini)

Abstract

The proportions of males produced by queens or workers of Scaptotrigona depilis, and the sex-ratio in the brood, were estimated. Thirteen young combs were collected; from one half of each comb the cells were opened and the number of eggs per cell was recorded. Later, upon maturation, from the other halves of the combs the individual inside each cell was classified according to sex. If from a cell containing initially two eggs a male would emerge (supposedly the son of a worker) the proportion of such cells in the comb would represent the maximum overall workers' male production. Consequently, the difference with the number of males found in the second half of the comb would indicate the minimum contribution by the queen. In these 13 combs, on average, 7.3% of the cells contained 2 eggs, whilst in 30.9% of the cells a male developed. Males were found in 10 combs, in 2-79% of the cells. In 6 of the 13 combs 2-47% of the cells contained 2 eggs. In these 6 combs more than 40% of the cells had a male inside. In 5 of them, the frequency of males was significantly higher than the frequency of cells containing 2 eggs. Queens, therefore, produced the majority of the males. There was no correlation between worker and queen numerical investments in male production, indicating different response mechanisms of workers, compared to queens, to conditions favouring male production. There was also no correlation between the mean egg size of the queen and the percentage males in the combs.

Ontogenia da atratividade sexual em rainhas de >i<Scaptotrigona>/i< aff. >i<depilis>/i< (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Meliponini)

“…Entretanto, esses compostos não podem ter essa mesma função em S. aff. depilis, pois nessa espécie as operárias produzem ovos tróficos (que servem de alimento para as rainhas) e reprodutivos (que originaram machos) mesmo com a presença da rainha (LACERDA & SIMÕES, 2006;LACERDA et al, 2010).…”