Comparative study of wax glands in four Meliponini bees (Hymenoptera, Apidae) producing different quantities of wax
The developmental degree of the wax glands was compared in four Meliponini bees, that produce different quantities of wax. The histological data and height average of the wax epithelium during the time in which the maximum production of wax is expected, are in accordance with the rates of wax produc...
| Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | article |
| Status: | Published version |
| Publication Date: | 2000 |
| Country: | Brasil |
| Institution: | Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) |
| Repository: | Repositório Institucional da UNESP |
| Language: | English |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:repositorio.unesp.br:11449/26935 |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0073-47212000000200010 http://hdl.handle.net/11449/26935 |
| Access Level: | Open access |
| Keyword: | Stingless bees wax glands development wax production |
| Summary: | The developmental degree of the wax glands was compared in four Meliponini bees, that produce different quantities of wax. The histological data and height average of the wax epithelium during the time in which the maximum production of wax is expected, are in accordance with the rates of wax produced by the species. In Lestrimelitta limao (Smith, 1863) a species which has cleptobiotic habits, and frequently rob wax from the attacked colonies, the height of wax epithelium was the lowest among the studied species. The cells seem to show an abnormal vacuolated cytoplasm, in the phase in which they would be producing wax. |
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