Nesting biology, seasonality and host range of sweat bee, Hoplonomia westwoodi (Gribodo) (Hymenoptera: Halictidae: Nomiinae)

Nesting biology and Seasonal dynamics of Halictid bee, Hoplonomia westwoodi (Nomiinae: Halictidae) was studied at ICAR-National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources (NBAIR) Bengaluru, Yelahanka Campus (13.096792N, 77.565976E) India from July 2016 to May 2017. The bee built subterranean nests on a leveled soil surface with turrets with main shaft running to a depth of 70.1 cm. In total, nineteen cells were observed in clusters at diferente depths. Different life stages of the bee were observed in the cells. The life cycle of the bee was completed in 41.80 days. The bees were found actively foraging on different flora belonging to the different families like Acanthaceae, Asteraceae, Convolvulaceae, Fabaceae, Lamiaceae, Malpighiaceae, Polygonaceae, Rubiaceae and Solanceae throughout the year with the peak population during the months of June to November. Marked preference and behavior of buzz pollination was observed on the flowers of Solanaceous crops like tomato and eggplant

Foraging specificity of Tetralonia (Thygatina) macroceps (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Anthophorinae) on Argyreia cuneata (Convolvulaceae)

Floral specificity is a behavior that evolved due to mutualistic interactions between the plant-pollinator community. Flowers advertise themselves using visual or chemical cues to attract pollinators and gain reproductive success through pollination. Pollinators forage for rewards such as nectar or pollen produced by the flowers. We found that an anthophorid bee, Tetralonia macroceps, foraged specifically on Argyreia cuneata flowers. No visitation was observed on the flowers of A. nervosa though both belong to Convolvulaceae. T. macroceps was the most abundant floral visitor (5.21 bees/flower/5 min) on A. cuneata and did not visit A. nervosa. Mass flowering and narrow tubular flower structure with easy access to pollen in A. cuneata were the traits that accounted for the foraging specificity of T. macroceps. The present study investigates the preference of T. macroceps for the flowers and floral extracts of A. cuneata and A. nervosa. The bee visited 10.16 flowers/5 min of A. cuneata. T. macroceps were highly attracted to the flowers of A. cuneata. No bees were attracted to A. nervosa. The floral abundance of A. cuneata was relatively higher compared to A. nervosa. Pollen analysis of foraging bees of T. macroceps revealed the selective preference towards the pollen of A. cuneata. The highest number of bees preferred the extract of A. cuneata (7.75) compared to A. nervosa (0.50) in the Y-olfactory maze. Floral extract of A. cuneata caused the highest neuronal electroantennogram (EAG) response (1.48 mV) than A. nervosa (0.36 mV). Our preliminary studies indicated the presence of specific volatile organic compounds (VOCs) nonacosane (13.26%), hexatriacontane (12.06%), and beta farnesene (6.19%) observed in A. cuneata were absent in congener A. nervosa

A Sustainable Technique for Colony Multiplication by Eduction of Wild Nests of the Stingless Bee Tetragonula iridipennis Smith

Colony multiplication of stingless bees, Tetragonula iridipennis, largely relies on the eduction of wild colonies from their natural nesting sites in India. During the hiving of wild colonies, colonies were destroyed with the loss of robust wild foragers and built-in storage reserves over the years. The present study was conducted to devise a technique to sustainably multiply the colonies of stingless bees from the wild colony and the colony establishment and development during the eduction process. The annexure hives provided for eduction were accepted in a shorter time (3.25 ± 1.18 days), with the construction of storage pots observed at 7.75 ± 1.59 days after hive acceptance by the bees. The movement of foragers between the wild colony and the annexure hives was noticed for 13.80 ± 4.20 days. The foragers settled in the annexure hives and started foraging after 18.20 ± 2.49 days. The advancing fronts were observed at 26.67 ± 2.58 days after the addition of the laying queen in the established annexure hives. There was a significant increase in the number of inhive workers after the queen seeding in the annexure hives. This technique is the easiest and most sustainable non- destructive way of multiplication of stingless bee colonies without loss in viability of the perennial wild colony

Leafcutter Bees (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae) as Pollinators of Pigeon Pea (Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp., Fabaceae): Artificial Trap Nests as a strategy for their conservation

Solitary bees of the family Megachilidae are the key pollinators of pigeon pea. Artificial trap nests were used to study nesting parameters, such as occupancy rate, nest establishment time, and building pattern during the vegetative and flowering stages of the Cajanus cajan (Fabaceae). The installed traps were occupied by three different leafcutter bees (Megachile lanata, M. laticeps, M. disjuncta) and one parasitic bee Coelioxys sp. Bees occupied the nest tubes for 16.01 ± 2.82 and 10.23 ± 2.30 days in the vegetative and flowering stages. We recorded 38.33 and 72.50% trap occupancy rates during crop vegetative and flowering stages, respectively. The percent parasitization by Melittobia sp was significantly higher during the vegetative stage (53.67%). Brood cells were parasitized by Coelioxys sp (6.67%) during the flowering stage. Many female bees tend to occupy trap nests with active nest construction during the flowering stage (7.21 ± 2.28 bees). In contrast, male bees merely took shelter inside the traps during the vegetative stage. Thus, it is concluded that female bees possess more wing wear during the vegetative stage of the crop when compared to the flowering stage. We also observed a significant increase in the percent pod set, the number of seeds per pod, and 100 seed weight in the experimental plot compared to the control plot, proving the importance of leafcutter bees for the pollination of Cajanus cajan crop. The present study results confirmed the role of artificial trap nests in providing habitats for the solitary leafcutter bees, thereby increasing their activity and nest abundance, which favors the pollination and better yield in pigeon pea

Coconut shell traps: easiest and economic way to attract stingless bees (Tetragonula iridipennis) Smith

The trap occupancy rate and colony development parameters of swarms of stingless bee, Tetragonula iridipennis in coconut shell traps was studied in the research farm of ICAR-National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources (NBAIR) Bengaluru, Yelahanka campus Karnataka, India. The trap occupancy rate by the stingless bees was 44.87% in a time period of 13.40 ± 4.38 days. New cells were constructed by the bees in 12.10 ± 2.13 days. The number of honey and pollen pots filled was 15.60 ± 3.92 and 6.61 ± 2.95, respectively. The brood cells were constructed 89.50 ± 6.07 days after acceptance of the shell traps with an average of 67.70 ± 20.83 brood cells per trap. The foragers preferred foraging for nectar, resin and pollen during the 15, 30 and 45 days after acceptance of the coconut shells for nesting. Coconut shell traps are easiest and economic way of trapping the swarming population of stingless bees.

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Not AvailableThe whole genome of Helicoverpa armigera nucleopolyhedrovirus (HearNPV) from India, HearNPV-L1, was sequenced and analyzed, with a view to look for genes and/or nucleotide sequences that might be involved in the differences and virulence among other HearNPVs sequenced from other countries like SP1A (Spain), NNg1 (Kenya) and G4 (China). The entire nucleotide sequence of the HearNPV-L1 genome was 136,740 bp in length having GC content of 39.19% and contained 113 ORFs that could encode polypeptides with more than 50 amino acids (GenBank accession number KT013224). Two ORFs, viz., ORF 18 (300 bp) and ORF 19 (401 bp) identified were unique in HearNPV-L1 genome. Most of the HearNPV-L1 ORFs showed high similarity to NNg1, SP1A and G4 genomes. HearNPV-L1 genome contains 5 h (hr1-hr5), these regions were found 84–100% similar to hr region of NNg1, SP1A and G4 genomes. A total of four bro genes were observed in HearNPV-L1 genome, of which bro-a gene was 12 and 351 bp bigger than SP1A and G4 bro-a, respectively, while bro-b was 15 bp bigger SP1A and NNg1 bro-b, whereas 593 bp shorter than G4 bro-b, while bro-c was 12 bp shorter than NNg1, however bro-c was absent in G4 genome. HearNPV-L1 bro-d was 100% homologous to bro-d of SP1A, NNg1 and G4 genomes, respectively. The comparative analysis of HearNPV-L1 genome indicated that there are several other putative genes and nucleotide sequences that may be responsible for insecticidal activity in HearNPV-L1 isolate, however, further functional analysis of the hypothetical (putative) genes may help identifying the genes that are crucial for the virulence and insecticidal activityNot Availabl