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Trigona Hypogea
''Trigona hypogea'' is a species of stingless bee from the Neotropics; it is unusual in that it is one of only three known species of bee that exclusively uses carrion as a protein source, rather than pollen,Roubik, D.W. (1982)"Obligate Necrophagy in a Social Bee" ''Science'' 217 (4564): 1059–60. earning it the nickname "vulture bee". These bees consume flesh, carry it internally back to the colony, and regurgitate it along with other secretions into storage pots similar to those used by the colonies to store honey; the larvae are fed on this substance, while the adult bees consume the honey. References {{Taxonbar, from=Q5601325 hypogea A hypogeum or hypogaeum (plural hypogea or hypogaea, pronounced ; literally meaning "underground", from Greek language, Greek ''hypo'' (under) and ''ghê'' (earth)) is an underground temple or tomb. Hypogea will often contain niche (archite ... Insects described in 1902 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stingless Bee
Stingless bees, sometimes called stingless honey bees or simply meliponines, are a large group of bees (about 550 described species), comprising the tribe Meliponini (or subtribe Meliponina according to other authors). They belong in the family Apidae, and are closely related to common honey bees, carpenter bees, orchid bees, and bumblebees. Meliponines have stingers, but they are highly reduced and cannot be used for defense, though these bees exhibit other defensive behaviors and mechanisms. Meliponines are not the only type of bee incapable of stinging: all male bees and many female bees of several other families, such as Andrenidae, also cannot sting. Some stingless bees have powerful mandibles and can inflict painful bites. Geographical distribution Stingless bees can be found in most tropical or subtropical regions of the world, such as Australia, Africa, Southeast Asia, and tropical America.Michener, C D. ''The bees of the World''. Johns Hopkins University Press, 972 pp. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neotropics
The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropics, tropical Ecoregion#Terrestrial, terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate climate, temperate zone. Definition In biogeography, the Neotropic or Neotropical realm is one of the eight terrestrial realms. This realm includes South America, Central America, the Caribbean islands, and southern North America. In Mexico, the Yucatán Peninsula and southern lowlands, and most of the east and west coastlines, including the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula are Neotropical. In the United States southern Florida and coastal Central Florida are considered Neotropical. The realm also includes temperate southern South America. In contrast, the Neotropical Phytochorion, Floristic Kingdom excludes southernmost South America, which instead is placed in the Antarctic Floristic Kingdom, Antarctic kingdom. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carrion
Carrion () is the decaying flesh of dead animals, including human flesh. Overview Carrion is an important food source for large carnivores and omnivores in most ecosystems. Examples of carrion-eaters (or scavengers) include crows, vultures, condors, hawks, eagles, hyenas, Virginia opossum, Tasmanian devils, coyotes and Komodo dragons. Many invertebrates, such as the carrion and burying beetles, as well as maggots of calliphorid flies (such as one of the most important species in '' Calliphora vomitoria'') and flesh-flies, also eat carrion, playing an important role in recycling nitrogen and carbon in animal remains. Carrion begins to decay at the moment of the animal's death, and it will increasingly attract insects and breed bacteria. Not long after the animal has died, its body will begin to exude a foul odor caused by the presence of bacteria and the emission of cadaverine and putrescine. Some plants and fungi smell like decomposing carrion and attract insects that a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pollen
Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophytes during the process of their movement from the stamens to the pistil of flowering plants, or from the male cone to the female cone of gymnosperms. If pollen lands on a compatible pistil or female cone, it germinates, producing a pollen tube that transfers the sperm to the ovule containing the female gametophyte. Individual pollen grains are small enough to require magnification to see detail. The study of pollen is called palynology and is highly useful in paleoecology, paleontology, archaeology, and forensics. Pollen in plants is used for transferring haploid male genetic material from the anther of a single flower to the stigma of another in cross-pollination. In a case of self-pollination, this process takes place from the anth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vulture Bee
Vulture bees, also known as carrion bees, are a small group of three closely related South American stingless bee species in the genus ''Trigona'' which feed on rotting meat. Vulture bees produce a honey-like substance which is not derived from nectar, but rather from protein-rich secretions of the bees' hypopharyngeal glands. These secretions are likely derived from the bees' diet, which consists of carrion eaten outside the nest.Laura L. Figueroa, Jessica J. Maccaro, Erin Krichilsky, Douglas Yanega, Quinn S. McFrederickWhy Did the Bee Eat the Chicken? Symbiont Gain, Loss, and Retention in the Vulture Bee Microbiome In: ASM mBio, vol. 12, no. 6, e02317-12, 23 November 2021, doi:10.1128/mBio.02317-21 This unusual behavior was only discovered in 1982, nearly two centuries after the bees were first classified.Roubik, D.W. (1982)"Obligate Necrophagy in a Social Bee" ''Science'' 217 (4564): 1059–60. Taxonomy The three species in this group are: * ''Trigona crassipes'' (Fabricius ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trigona
''Trigona'' is one of the largest genera of stingless bees, comprising about 32 species, exclusively occurring in the New World, and formerly including many more subgenera than the present assemblage; many of these former subgenera have been elevated to generic status.Michener, C.D. (2000). The Bees of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press Range ''Trigona'' species occur throughout the Neotropical region, including South and Central America, the Mexican lowlands, and the Caribbean islands. They can occur in forests, savannas, and man made environments. ''Trigona'' bees are active all year round, although they are less active in cool environments. Nesting ''Trigona'' nests are constructed from wax they produce and plant resins they collect. They usually nest in tree cavities and underground. Vulture bees Vulture bees comprise three ''Trigona'' species, and are the only bees known to be scavengers. These bees collect and feed on dead animal flesh. Communication Some spe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
