Nesting Etiquacy of Stingless Bee Tetragonula “Iridipennis” Species Group

Authors

  • B Saaivignesh Department of Agricultural Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, Annamalai University, Chidambaram 608002, Tamil Nadu
  • S Manickavasagam Department of Agricultural Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, Annamalai University, Chidambaram 608002, Tamil Nadu
  • Banujaa . Department of Agricultural Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, Annamalai University, Chidambaram 608002, Tamil Nadu

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.55446/IJE.2023.1250

Keywords:

Tetragonula “iridipennis” species group, feral colonies, dammer bee, habitat, behaviour, nest characteristics, nest camouflage, brood pots, mud, stone walls, nest entrance, tunnel length

Abstract

In this study a total of 42 feral colonies of Tetragonula “iridipennis” were domesticated and observed for their nesting behaviour in feral nest and also in hive. Observation on the nesting behaviour revealed that, they generally inhabit old mud and stone walls, and the shape and colour of nest entrance were predominantly elliptical and black, respectively. The length and width of the entrance tube ranged between 9-13 and 3-9 mm, respectively on different substrata. The external and internal tunnel length ranged between 0-18 and 3-156 mm, respectively. The orientation of hive entrance was mainly towards northeast and east. Number of brood pots constructed/ batch and time required for a worker to construct the single brood pot were recorded.

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Published

2023-09-01

How to Cite

Saaivignesh, B., Manickavasagam, S., & ., B. (2023). Nesting Etiquacy of Stingless Bee <i>Tetragonula “Iridipennis”</i> Species Group. Indian Journal of Entomology, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.55446/IJE.2023.1250

Issue

Online First

Section

Research Articles
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Europe PMC

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