Body size as a proxy of probing time and visitation rates on cucumber by two African stingless bees increase fruit quality and seed quantity

Pollinators are of essential importance for sustainable agriculture. However, pollination efficiency depends on interacting factors such as pollinator behaviour and morphology. We compared the effect of probing time length and visit frequency of two distinct body size African stingless bee species (Meliponula bocandei, Dactylurina schmidti) as alternative pollinators to Apis mellifera scutellata on greenhouse cultivated cucumber. We found differences in morphometric characteristics, between a set of 9 body parameters. Bee body size was the morphological feature that varied the most among bee species. On average, body size was largest in honeybees, followed by M. bocandei, and finally D. schmidti, which was the smallest. Glossa length was different between the bee species: A. mellifera scutellata (2.86 ± 0.026 mm), M. bocandei (2.20 ± 0.031 mm), D. schmidti (0.72 ± 0.025 mm). Such differences among bee species in body parameters correspondingly affected nectar probing times during a single flower visit, which were different for the bee species. D. schmidti (3.34 ± 0.56 s) had the longest probing time, while M. bocandei (2.57 s) had the shortest. Fruit quality was strongly positively influenced by the visit duration during a single visit on female flowers. The slope of fruit quality produced was higher in flowers pollinated by M. bocandei. During a single flower visit, heavier and bigger fruits were obtained in the gold standard hand cross pollination and flowers pollinated by M. bocandei. The bee species and the number of visits significantly impacted fruit weight, fruit volume and number of seeds. Subsequent visit performed by M. bocandei positively impacted fruit quality. Three visits on a flower were enough to ensure the production of high-quality fruits. Fruit sweetness depended on the number of visits received by the flower, but not on the bee species that performed the visit. Altogether, our results indicate that the stingless bees M. bocandei is more an efficient pollinator of cucumber than A. m. scutellata and D. schmidti and can be recommended for use under greenhouse cultivation

Effective pollination of greenhouse Galia musk melon (Cucumis melo L. var. reticulatus ser.) by afrotropical stingless bee species

An increasing demand for pollination services highlights the need for research on alternative pollinators for greenhouse and open field food crops. We compared the foraging behaviour and effectiveness of seven endemic African Meliponinae (Meliponula bocandei, Dactylurina schmidti, Plebeina hildebrandti, Meliponula lendliana, Hypotrigona gribodoi, Meliponula ferruginea, Meliponula togoensis) as alternative pollinators to honey bees of greenhouse cultivated Cantaloupe melons. It was observed that honey bees started foraging sooner after introduction in the greenhouse (av. 4 days) than the stingless bee species (8 to 16 days). Stingless bees were mainly harvesting nectar (ca. 2/3 of all flower visits) and M. ferruginea, M. togoensis, H. gribodoi and P. hildebrandti spent more time collecting nectar than other stingless bee species. Fruit maturation was significantly faster when flowers were pollinated by stingless bees compared to honey bees, with the shortest fruit maturation time found when flowers were pollinated by M. bocandei and H. gribodoi. All treatments resulted in fruits of similar roundness and ellipsoid ratios. The highest fruit weight and fruit volume were obtained from flowers pollinated by either manual pollination, H. gribodoi, M. bocandei, M. lendliana and P. hildebrandti compared to honey bees. Correspondingly, pollination by the latter 5 species resulted in the highest seed counts per fruit, although these differences did not affect seed weight or volume. Altogether, our results indicate that stingless bees such as H. gribodoi, M. bocandei, M. lendliana and P. hildebrandti are more efficient pollinators of sweet melon than A. m. scutellata and can be recommended for use in greenhouse crops

Can the shape of the wing help in the identification of African stingless bee species? (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Meliponini)

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African endemic stingless bees as an efficient alternative pollinator to honey bees in greenhouse cucumber (Cucumis sativus L)

The current honey bee decline necessitates the use of alternative native pollinators to ensure global food security. Here, we compared the pollination behaviour and efficiency of the African honey bee (Apis mellifera) and six African endemic Meliponini (Meliponula bocandei, Dactylurina schmidti, Meliponula lendliana, Hypotrigona gribodoi, Meliponula ferruginea and Meliponula togoensis) in a greenhouse with the non-parthenocarpic cucumber variety Super Marketer. Honey bees and D. schmidti started foraging on introduction in the greenhouse, while M. lendliana and M. togoensis showed the longest delay. In most species, foragers collected nectar and pollen, excepting M. bocandei that specialized in nectar collection, and H. gribodoi and M. togoensis, specialized in pollen collection. African honey bees visited flowers the shortest, while H. gribodoi and D. schmidti had a 2-fold probing time, on average. Most stingless bees species had a lower hive activity with fewer foragers encountered per hour than for honey bees, except D. schmidti. M. bocandei, M. ferruginea, A. mellifera scutellata and H. gribodoi, yielded a seed germination percentage of around 90%. M. lendliana, M. togoensis and D. schmidti yielded a much lower seed germination percentage around 30%, which indicates that the quality of pollination was remarkably lower by using these three species. The highest sugar content was recorded in fruits from flowers pollinated by M. bocandei, African honey bees, D. schimdti or M. togoensis with the same solid content as the gold standard method, i.e., hand cross-pollination. We found that M. bocandei was the most efficient cucumber pollinator of all species tested: because pollination by this species yielded the largest and heaviest fruits and the highest seed numbers