Recursos tróficos de abelhas Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera, Apidae) em uma área de savana do Estado de Roraima: Fontes de néctar e pólen

Abstract

The knowledge of the nectar and pollen resources utilized by bees it is useful for determination of the local bee plants and honey floral origin. The resources utilized by Apis mellifera L. bee were determined in field observation studies by analyses of honey samples and by analyses of corbicula pollen. The study was carried out in Contáo Indian Community, State of Roraima, Brazil, during the period of 22110196 to 28/04/97. Three-stem sample were collected of each plant with flowers. Any flowering blossoms of each sample were used to prepare pollen slides for reference to compare with the pollens of tioney samples and pollen of corbicula samples. In the corbicula samples were identified, in three hives, 52 pollen types distributed in 34 families. Mimosaceae (5 pollen types), Sapindaceae, Rubiaceae and Vehenaceae (4 pollen types), Sterculiaceae and Anacardiaceae (3 pollen types) were the families more represented. The bees visited 48 plants species in 26 famiiies In the field observations. Mimosacea (6 species), Caesalpiniaceae (6 species), Sterculiaceae (4 species), Pontederiaceae. (3 species) were the families more visited. In honey samples 21 pollen types were identified represented in 13 families. Mimosaceae (4 pollen types), Anacardiaceae (3 pollen types), Sterculiaceae (3 pollen types), Caesalpiniaceae (2 pollen types) were the famílies more represented. Comparing the results obtained at field, we observed that 32 visited plants were present in the corbicula pollen and 15 species in honey sample. Only 15 species occurred in the three analysis procedures. Except Copaifera oficinalis all pollen found in the honey samples were represented also in corbicula samples. Fifteen species occurred exclusively in the field observations, 16 in corbicula samples of the total of 73 species obtained in the three procedures. Curatella americana and Mimosa polydactyla were the species more represented in honey sampies and corbicula samples, as well.