The South America encompasses the highest levels of biodiversity found anywhere in the world and ... more The South America encompasses the highest levels of biodiversity found anywhere in the world and its rich biota is distributed among many different biogeographical regions. However, many regions of South America are still poorly studied, including its xeric environments, such as the threatened Caatinga and Cerrado phytogeographical domains. In particular, the effects of Quaternary climatic events on the demography of endemic species from xeric habitats are poorly understood. The present study uses an integrative approach to reconstruct the evolutionary history of Partamona rustica, an endemic stingless bee from dry forest diagonal in Brazil, in a spatial-temporal framework. In this sense, we sequenced four mitochondrial genes and genotyped eight microsatellite loci. Our results identified two population groups: one to the west and the other to the east of the São Francisco River Valley (SFRV). These groups split in the late Pleistocene, and the Approximate Bayesian Computation appro...
In order to evaluate the genetic diversity and structure ofMelipona mandacaia,we analyzed 104 col... more In order to evaluate the genetic diversity and structure ofMelipona mandacaia,we analyzed 104 colonies collected in 12 localities in Bahia state, northeastern Brazil, using ISSR-PCR. A total of 109 bands were obtained with a significant polymorphism of 72.47%. Estimates of genetic diversity indicated low values of heterozygosity (HeandHBvalues were 0.2616 and 0.2573, resp.). These reduced values have been reported in other studies in stingless bees and maybe justified by dispersion process in the origin of new nests. AMOVA revealed that the higher percentage of variation is within localities (70.39%). TheΦSTandθBvalues were, respectively, 0.2961 and 0.3289, thereby indicating a moderate population structuring. The correlation between genetic and geographic distances (r=0.4542;P<0.01) suggests isolation by distance. Our study contributes to describing the genetic diversity of endemic organisms from Caatinga and may help future efforts to preserve this threatened biome.
ABSTRACT Partamona rustica is a stingless bee that occupies dry forests of Brazil, such as the ce... more ABSTRACT Partamona rustica is a stingless bee that occupies dry forests of Brazil, such as the cerrado (savanna-like biome) and caatinga (xeric shrubland and thorn forest), ranging from the northern portion of the state of Minas Gerais to the southwestern portion of the Bahia state. As this bee is endemic to these environments and its biology is poorly known, the aim of the present study was to investigate aspects of its natural history and biogeography. Moreover, the potential distribution of the species is analyzed through ecological niche modeling. Sampling was performed in the full range of distribution of the species. Nesting sites for 145 colonies, plants visited, and termite nests hosts were identified. Most of the termite nests in which the species nested were active (83%) and corresponded to Constrictotermes cyphergaster. Pollen analyses revealed 62 pollen types from 30 families of angiosperms visited by P. rustica, the most common of which were from the families Leguminosae-Mimosoideae (11.1%) and Myrtaceae (7.9%). Partamona rustica occurs in areas at 500 ± 187.30 m above sea level with semi-arid climates. The climatic niche model revealed a very realistic range for P. rustica, contouring the Chapada Diamantina National Park by the east, where there are no records of the species. Given the ecological importance of bees as pollinators, the intense pressure exerted by bee hunters and environmental changes caused by human activities, the present findings underscore the importance of concentrating efforts on the conservation of dry areas and the endemic species that inhabit these forests.
The foetida species complex comprises 13 Neotropical species in the ant genus Neoponera. Neoponer... more The foetida species complex comprises 13 Neotropical species in the ant genus Neoponera. Neoponera villosa Fabricius (1804) , Neoponera inversa Smith (1858), Neoponera bactronica Fernandes, Oliveira & Delabie (2013), and Neoponera curvinodis (Forel, 1899) have had an ambiguous taxonomic status for more than two decades. In southern Bahia, Brazil, these four species are frequently found in sympatry. Here we used Bayesian Inference and maximum likelihood analyses of COI and 16S mtDNA sequence data and conventional cytogenetic data together with observations on morphology to characterize sympatric populations of N. villosa, N. inversa, N. bactronica, and N. curvinodis. Our results showed marked differences in the karyotype of these ants. Both N. curvinodis and N. inversa have chromosome number of 2n = 30. Their chromosome composition, however, is distinct, which indicates that N. curvinodis is more closely related to N. bactronica. These four species clustered into three distinct group...
Partamona seridoensis is an endemic stingless bee from the Caatinga, a Neotropical dry forest in ... more Partamona seridoensis is an endemic stingless bee from the Caatinga, a Neotropical dry forest in northeastern Brazil. Like other stingless bees, this species plays an important ecological role as a pollinator. The aim of the present study was to investigate the genetic structure and evolutionary history of P. seridoensis across its current geographic range. Workers from 84 nests from 17 localities were analyzed for COI and Cytb genic regions. The population structure tests (Bayesian phylogenetic inference, AMOVA and haplotype network) consistently characterized two haplogroups (northwestern and eastern), with little gene flow between them, generating a high differentiation between them as well as among the populations within each haplogroup. The Mantel test revealed no isolation by distance. No evidence of a potential geographic barrier in the present that could explain the diversification between the P. seridoensis haplogroups was found. However, Pleistocene climatic changes may ex...
The South America encompasses the highest levels of biodiversity found anywhere in the world and ... more The South America encompasses the highest levels of biodiversity found anywhere in the world and its rich biota is distributed among many different biogeographical regions. However, many regions of South America are still poorly studied, including its xeric environments, such as the threatened Caatinga and Cerrado phytogeographical domains. In particular, the effects of Quaternary climatic events on the demography of endemic species from xeric habitats are poorly understood. The present study uses an integrative approach to reconstruct the evolutionary history of Partamona rustica, an endemic stingless bee from dry forest diagonal in Brazil, in a spatial-temporal framework. In this sense, we sequenced four mitochondrial genes and genotyped eight microsatellite loci. Our results identified two population groups: one to the west and the other to the east of the São Francisco River Valley (SFRV). These groups split in the late Pleistocene, and the Approximate Bayesian Computation appro...
In order to evaluate the genetic diversity and structure ofMelipona mandacaia,we analyzed 104 col... more In order to evaluate the genetic diversity and structure ofMelipona mandacaia,we analyzed 104 colonies collected in 12 localities in Bahia state, northeastern Brazil, using ISSR-PCR. A total of 109 bands were obtained with a significant polymorphism of 72.47%. Estimates of genetic diversity indicated low values of heterozygosity (HeandHBvalues were 0.2616 and 0.2573, resp.). These reduced values have been reported in other studies in stingless bees and maybe justified by dispersion process in the origin of new nests. AMOVA revealed that the higher percentage of variation is within localities (70.39%). TheΦSTandθBvalues were, respectively, 0.2961 and 0.3289, thereby indicating a moderate population structuring. The correlation between genetic and geographic distances (r=0.4542;P<0.01) suggests isolation by distance. Our study contributes to describing the genetic diversity of endemic organisms from Caatinga and may help future efforts to preserve this threatened biome.
ABSTRACT Partamona rustica is a stingless bee that occupies dry forests of Brazil, such as the ce... more ABSTRACT Partamona rustica is a stingless bee that occupies dry forests of Brazil, such as the cerrado (savanna-like biome) and caatinga (xeric shrubland and thorn forest), ranging from the northern portion of the state of Minas Gerais to the southwestern portion of the Bahia state. As this bee is endemic to these environments and its biology is poorly known, the aim of the present study was to investigate aspects of its natural history and biogeography. Moreover, the potential distribution of the species is analyzed through ecological niche modeling. Sampling was performed in the full range of distribution of the species. Nesting sites for 145 colonies, plants visited, and termite nests hosts were identified. Most of the termite nests in which the species nested were active (83%) and corresponded to Constrictotermes cyphergaster. Pollen analyses revealed 62 pollen types from 30 families of angiosperms visited by P. rustica, the most common of which were from the families Leguminosae-Mimosoideae (11.1%) and Myrtaceae (7.9%). Partamona rustica occurs in areas at 500 ± 187.30 m above sea level with semi-arid climates. The climatic niche model revealed a very realistic range for P. rustica, contouring the Chapada Diamantina National Park by the east, where there are no records of the species. Given the ecological importance of bees as pollinators, the intense pressure exerted by bee hunters and environmental changes caused by human activities, the present findings underscore the importance of concentrating efforts on the conservation of dry areas and the endemic species that inhabit these forests.
The foetida species complex comprises 13 Neotropical species in the ant genus Neoponera. Neoponer... more The foetida species complex comprises 13 Neotropical species in the ant genus Neoponera. Neoponera villosa Fabricius (1804) , Neoponera inversa Smith (1858), Neoponera bactronica Fernandes, Oliveira & Delabie (2013), and Neoponera curvinodis (Forel, 1899) have had an ambiguous taxonomic status for more than two decades. In southern Bahia, Brazil, these four species are frequently found in sympatry. Here we used Bayesian Inference and maximum likelihood analyses of COI and 16S mtDNA sequence data and conventional cytogenetic data together with observations on morphology to characterize sympatric populations of N. villosa, N. inversa, N. bactronica, and N. curvinodis. Our results showed marked differences in the karyotype of these ants. Both N. curvinodis and N. inversa have chromosome number of 2n = 30. Their chromosome composition, however, is distinct, which indicates that N. curvinodis is more closely related to N. bactronica. These four species clustered into three distinct group...
Partamona seridoensis is an endemic stingless bee from the Caatinga, a Neotropical dry forest in ... more Partamona seridoensis is an endemic stingless bee from the Caatinga, a Neotropical dry forest in northeastern Brazil. Like other stingless bees, this species plays an important ecological role as a pollinator. The aim of the present study was to investigate the genetic structure and evolutionary history of P. seridoensis across its current geographic range. Workers from 84 nests from 17 localities were analyzed for COI and Cytb genic regions. The population structure tests (Bayesian phylogenetic inference, AMOVA and haplotype network) consistently characterized two haplogroups (northwestern and eastern), with little gene flow between them, generating a high differentiation between them as well as among the populations within each haplogroup. The Mantel test revealed no isolation by distance. No evidence of a potential geographic barrier in the present that could explain the diversification between the P. seridoensis haplogroups was found. However, Pleistocene climatic changes may ex...
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