''Melipona'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

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 A ...

s, widespread in warm areas of the

Neotropic The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone. Definition In bioge ...

s, from

Sinaloa Sinaloa (), officially the Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sinaloa), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is d ...

and

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...

(México) to Tucumán and

Misiones Misiones (, ''Missions'') is one of the 23 provinces of Argentina, located in the northeastern corner of the country in the Mesopotamia region. It is surrounded by Paraguay to the northwest, Brazil to the north, east and south, and Corrientes P ...

(Argentina). About 70

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, Ecology and Evolution''. ''Springer Nature'', 385 pp. The largest producer of honey from ''Melipona'' bees in Mexico is in the state of

Yucatán Yucatán (, also , , ; yua, Yúukatan ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Yucatán,; yua, link=no, Xóot' Noj Lu'umil Yúukatan. is one of the 31 states which comprise the political divisions of Mexico, federal entities of Mexico. I ...

where bees are studied at an interactive park called "Bee Planet" which is within the Cuxtal Ecological Reserve. Several species are kept for

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

production, such as in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, where some are well-known enough to have common names, including ''uruçu'', ''mandaçaia'', ''jandaíra'', and ''manduri''. ''Melipona'' honey has long been used by humans and now is of minor commercial importance. Research is going on in improved beekeeping techniques. The Melipona bee is the only pollinator known to pollinate the

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the Mexican species, flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). Pollination is required to make the p ...

plant.

Pollination Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther of a plant to the stigma of a plant, later enabling fertilisation and the production of seeds, most often by an animal or by wind. Pollinating agents can be animals such as insects, birds ...

by Melipona bee has only occurred in Mexico and almost all vanilla for commercial production is hand pollinated.

Subtaxa

The following are some proposed subtaxa of ''Melipona'', although they are not yet widely used. * '' Eomelipona'' * '' Melikerria'' * ''Melipona'' (''

sensu stricto ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular co ...

'') * '' Michmelia''

Selected taxa

The genus includes the following species: * ''

Melipona amazonica ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour ...

'' (Schulz, 1905) * ''

Melipona asilvai ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' ( Moure, 1971) * ''

Melipona baeri ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Vachal, 1904) * ''

Melipona beecheii ''Melipona beecheii'' is a species of eusocial stingless bee. It is native to Central America from the Yucatán Peninsula in the north to Costa Rica in the south. ''M. beecheii'' was cultivated in the Yucatán Peninsula starting in the pre-Colum ...

'' (Bennett, 1831) * ''

Melipona belizeae ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Schwarz, 1932) * ''

Melipona bicolor ''Melipona bicolor'' , commonly known as Guaraipo or Guarupu, is a eusocial bee found primarily in South America. It is an inhabitant of the Araucaria Forest and the Atlantic Rainforest, and is most commonly found from South to East Brazil, B ...

'' (Lepeletier, 1836) –'' guarupu, guaraipo'' * ''

Melipona boliviana ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Schwarz, 1932) * ''

Melipona brachychaeta ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, Ec ...

'' (Moure, 1950) * ''

Melipona bradleyi ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, Ec ...

'' (Schwarz, 1932) (Melipona illustris (Schwarz, 1932)) * ''

Melipona capixaba ''Melipona capixaba'', commonly known as uruçu negra (black uruçu) in Brazil, is a species of eusocial stingless bees of the order Hymenoptera. It is endemic to the mountainous region of the State of Espirito Santo, Brazil. Since 2003, it has ...

'' (Moure & Camargo, 1995) * ''

Melipona captiosa ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Moure, 1962) * '' Melipona carrikeri'' (Cockerell, 1919) * ''

Melipona colimana ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Ayala, 1999) * '' Melipona compressipes'' (Fabricius, 1804) – ''tiúba'' ** ''Melipona compressipes manaosensis'' – ''jupará'' * '' Melipona costaricaensis'' (Cockerell, 1919) * ''

Melipona cramptoni ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Cockerell, 1920) * '' Melipona crinita'' (Moure & Kerr, 1950) * '' Melipona dubia'' (Moure & Kerr, 1950) * ''

Melipona eburnea ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán Province, Tucumán and Misiones Province, Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ...

'' (Friese, 1900) * ''

Melipona fasciata ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Latreille, 1811) * ''

Melipona fasciculata ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Smith, 1854) * '' Melipona favosa'' (Fabricius, 1798) * '' Melipona fuliginosa'' (Lepeletier, 1836) * '' Melipona flavolineata'' (Friese, 1900) * '' Melipona fulva'' (Lepeletier, 1836) * '' Melipona fuscata'' (Lepeletier, 1836) * '' Melipona fuscopilosa'' (Moure & Kerr, 1950) * '' Melipona fuscipes'' (Latreille, 1811) * '' Melipona grandis'' (Guérin-Méneville, 1844) * '' Melipona illota'' (Cockerell, 1919) * '' Melipona indecisa'' (Cockerell, 1919) * ''

Melipona interrupta ''Melipona interrupta'', commonly known as jandaíra in Brazil, is a species of eusocial stingless bee in the family Apidae and tribe Meliponini Stingless bees, sometimes called stingless honey bees or simply meliponines, are a large group of ...

'' (Latreille, 1811) – ''jandaíra'' * ''

Melipona lateralis ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Erichson, 1848) * '' Melipona lupitae'' (Ayala, 1999) * ''

Melipona mandacaia ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Smith, 1863) * '' Melipona marginata'' (Lepeletier, 1836) – ''manduri, manduri menor, mandurim, minduri, gurupu-do-miúdo, taipeira'' * ''

Melipona melanopleura ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Cockerell, 1919) * '' Melipona melanoventer'' (Schwarz, 1932) * ''

Melipona merrillae ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Cockerell, 1919) * '' Melipona micheneri'' (Schwarz, 1951) * '' Melipona mimetica'' (Cockerell, 1914) * '' Melipona mondury'' (Smith, 1863) * '' Melipona nebulosa'' (Camargo, 1988) * ''

Melipona nigrescens ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Friese, 1900) * ''

Melipona obscurior ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán Province, Tucumán and Misiones Province, Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ...

'' (Moure, 1971) * ''

Melipona ogilviei ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Schwarz, 1932) * '' Melipona orbignyi'' (Guérin-Méneville, 1844) * '' Melipona panamica'' (Cockerell, 1919) * ''

Melipona paraensis ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Ducke, 1916) * ''

Melipona peruviana ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Friese, 1900) * ''

Melipona puncticollis ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán Province, Tucumán and Misiones Province, Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ...

'' (Friese, 1902) * ''

Melipona quadrifasciata ''Melipona quadrifasciata'' is a species of eusocial, stingless bee of the order Hymenoptera. It is native to the southeastern coastal states of Brazil, where it is more commonly known as mandaçaia, which means "beautiful guard," as there is a ...

'' (Lepeletier, 1836) – ''mandaçaia, amanaçaia, manaçaia, "uruçu"'' ** ''M. q. anthidioides'' * '' Melipona quinquefasciata'' (Lepeletier, 1836) – ''mandaçaia-da-terra, mandaçaia-do-chão, uruçu-do-chão'' * '' Melipona rufescens'' (Friese, 1900 ) * ''

Melipona ruficrus ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' – ''irapuá * '' Melipona rufiventris'' (Lepeletier, 1836) – ''uruçu-amarela, tuiuva, tujuba, bugia'' ** ''M. r. paraensis'' – ''uruçu-boca-de-ralo * ''

Melipona salti ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Schwarz, 1932) * '' Melipona schwarzi'' (Moure, 1963) * ''

Melipona scutellaris ''Melipona scutellaris'' is a Eusociality, eusocial stingless bee species of the order Hymenoptera and the genus ''Melipona''. It is considered to be the reared ''Melipona'' species with the largest distribution in the North and Northeast regions ...

'' (Latreille, 1811) – ''uruçu-nordestina, "uruçu"'' * ''

Melipona seminigra ''Melipona seminigra'', commonly known as uruçu-boca-de-renda (literally "laced-mouth uruçu" bee in Brazilian Portuguese), is a species of eusocial stingless bee in the family Apidae and tribe Meliponini Stingless bees, sometimes called stin ...

'' (Friese, 1903) ** ''M. s. atrofulva'' ** ''M. s. abunensis'' ** ''M. s. merrillae'' – ''boca-de-renda'' ** ''M. s. pernigra'' * '' Melipona solani'' (Cockerell, 1912) * ''

Melipona subnitida ''Melipona subnitida'' is a neotropical bee species in the Apidae family found in the dry areas of Northeastern Brazil. This species of stingless bees practices single mating, monogynous habits. This species nests in hollow trunks of living tree ...

'' (Ducke, 1911) – ''jandaíra'' * ''

Melipona titania ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Gribodo, 1893) * '' Melipona torrida'' (Friese, 1917) * ''

Melipona triplaridis ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, E ...

'' (Cockerell, 1925) * '' Melipona tumupasae'' (Schwarz, 1932) * '' Melipona variegatipes'' (Gribodo, 1893) ** ''M. v. lautipes'' * ''

Melipona yucatanica ''Melipona'' is a genus of stingless bees, widespread in warm areas of the Neotropics, from Sinaloa and Tamaulipas (México) to Tucumán and Misiones (Argentina). About 70 species are known.Grüter, C. 2020. ''Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, Ec ...

'' (Camargo, Moure & Roubik, 1988)

References

{{Authority control Bee genera Orchid pollinators Taxa named by Johann Karl Wilhelm Illiger

Subtaxa

Selected taxa

See also

References