The Influence of the Loss of Brazilian Savanna Vegetation on the Occurrence of Nests of Stingless Bees (Apidae: Meliponini)

The vegetation of the Cerrado, also known as the Brazilian savanna, is rapidly being replaced by agricultural and urban areas. The scope of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the reduction in savanna vegetation and the occurrence of nests of stingless bees (Apidae: Meliponini), particularly those of the genus Melipona. We mapped 33 surveys of stingless bees nests located in Cerrado areas on Landsat images and assessed the proportions of vegetated, urban and rural areas within a radius of 3 km from each nest. We performed two-step cluster analyses separately for common and rare Meliponini species and Melipona species and assessed the proportion of vegetation in the resulting clusters. Common species such as Trigona spinipes and Tetragonisca angustula were frequent in areas surrounded by vegetation as well as in degraded surround areas. Some species, such as Oxytrigona tataira, occurred predominantly in degraded areas. Most Melipona species were uncommon or absent in the degraded areas. It is possible that isolated trees in rural landscapes provide functional connectivity for opportunistic species of stingless bees but not for susceptible species such as species of Melipona. This study is one of the first to attempt to understand the effects of the loss of Cerrado vegetation on the occurrence of stingless bees’ nests