The major species of stingless bees in Kerala is Trigona iridipennis Smith which are easy to domesticate due to low temperament and easy adaption to various habitats. Little is known about the variations that exist among them. We therefore conducted morphometric studies among workers and drones across 14 districts in Kerala with a view to characterize them.
A total of 188 and 71 samples of drones and workers collected and analyzed various morphometric characters including head length (HL), head width (HW), proboscis length (PL), distance between two dorsal ocelli/lower intercocular distance (DBO), dorsal ocello-ocular distance (DOOD), antennal length (AL), thorax femur length (TFL), thorax tibia length (TTL), thorax metatarsus length (TML), thorax metatarsus width (TMW), thorax forewing length (TFWL), thorax forewing width (TFWW), pterostigma width (PtStW), pterostigma length (PtStW), hind wing length (HWL), hind wing width (HWW), number of hamuli (HAM), abdominal tergite length (AbTL), abdominal sternum width (AbSW), mandible length (MdL) and mandible width (MdW), head length width ratio (HLW), thorax metatarsus length width ratio (TMLW) and thorax forewing length width ratio (TFWLW).
Our studies revealed that most of the worker morhopometric characters were positively correlated across all the districts in Kerala. However, there is not much significant differences among drones across various districts. Based on our studies, even though we detected significant differences among worker morhphotmetry we could not to find distinguishing and remarkable differences among collected samples. They may be interpreted as nutritional, seasonal and climatic factors.
Table of contents
1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1 Study area
2.2 Study design and data collection
2.2 Morphometric measurements
2.3 Statistical analysis
3. Results
3.1 Descriptive analysis
3.2 Corelation analysis
3.3 Principal component analysis
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Research Objectives and Focus
This study aims to perform a morphometric characterization of the stingless bee species Trigona iridipennis Smith in Kerala, India. The primary research objectives include characterizing the morphometric aspects of both worker and drone bees, as well as identifying similarities and differences among the samples collected from various districts using factor and principal component analysis to understand the underlying drivers of variation.
- Morphometric data collection across 14 districts in Kerala.
- Statistical analysis of worker and drone characteristics.
- Application of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for data reduction.
- Investigation of nutritional, seasonal, and climatic factors.
- Evaluation of stingless bee domestication and habitat adaptability.
Excerpt from the Book
4. Discussion
Our studies revealed that most of the worker morhopometric characters were positively correlated across all the districts in Kerala. The morpometric characters investigated in our study mainly depend on the body on body size as well as weight. Previous studies also prove that the body size and body weight of stingless bees were highly correlated and depend on the protein content and amount of larval food (Quezada-Euán et al., 2011; Ramalho et al., 1998; Hilário et al., 2003; Del Sarto et al., 2005; Hilário ans Imperatriz-Fonseca, 2009). In addition the worker body size vary depending on the season of brood raising where 10 fold differences in worker sizes observed in bumble bees (Quezada-Euán et al., 2011; Couvillon and Dornhaus, 2010). Considering the typical climatic conditions, availability of foraging plants and nature of domestication, there may exist significant changes in body size and related characteristics. However, there is not much significant differences among drones across various districts. This may due the facts that the drone samples were not fully representative of all districts of Kerala as well the special nature of sample collection emphasising on non-destructive method of collection.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Outlines the significance of stingless bees in pollination, their decline due to environmental factors, and the relevance of morphometric analysis for species discrimination.
2. Materials and Methods: Details the study area in Kerala, the collection design of 188 drone and 71 worker samples, and the morphometric and statistical techniques employed.
3. Results: Presents the findings of the descriptive, correlation, and principal component analyses regarding the morphometric variations observed in bees across different districts.
4. Discussion: Interprets the morphometric data, attributing variations in worker size to nutritional, seasonal, and climatic influences, and discusses the challenges in drone sampling.
5. Conclusions: Summarizes that workers show distinct variations in morphometric characters and suggests that further molecular biology studies are needed to support these findings.
Keywords
Stingless bees, Meliponiculture, Principal component analysis, Rotated component matrix, Trigona iridipennis, Morphometry, Kerala, Pollination, Worker bees, Drones, Correlation analysis, Environmental factors.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research?
The research focuses on the morphometric characterization of the stingless bee Trigona iridipennis Smith found across different districts in Kerala to better understand their physical variations.
What are the primary themes of this work?
The work covers themes such as meliponiculture, morphometric analysis of worker and drone bees, environmental impacts on bee populations, and the use of statistical tools for biological classification.
What is the main goal of the study?
The goal is to characterize the morphometric aspects of drones and workers and to identify similarities and differences using factor and principal component analysis.
Which scientific methods were used?
The study employed morphometric measurements using a steromicroscope, followed by statistical validation using SPSS, Pearson correlation analysis, and Principal Component Analysis (PCA).
What is covered in the main section?
The main section covers the site description, collection methodology, the results of morphometric variable analysis, and a discussion on potential environmental drivers like nutrition and climate.
Which keywords best describe the paper?
Keywords include Stingless bees, Meliponiculture, Principal component analysis, and Rotated component matrix.
Why are there differences in worker body size?
The authors suggest that these variations are likely due to nutritional, seasonal, and climatic factors that influence the development of the bees.
Are the drone samples representative of all districts?
The study notes that the drone samples were not fully representative of all districts, partly due to the technical challenges of non-destructive sampling.
- Citation du texte
- Prem Jose Vazhacharickal (Auteur), Sajan Jose K. (Auteur), 2014, Morphometric characterization of stingless bees (Trigona iridipennis Smith) in Kerala, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/349834
