Global InformationLestrimelitta limao information
| Lestrimelitta limao | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Apidae |
| Genus: | Lestrimelitta |
| Species: | L. limao
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| Binomial name | |
| Lestrimelitta limao Smith, 1863 [1]
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Lestrimelitta limao is a neotropical eusocial bee species found in Brazil and Panama and is part of the Apidae family. It is a species of stingless bees that practices obligate nest robbing.[2] They have never been spotted foraging from flowers,[3] an observation that supports their raiding behavior. Because of their lack of hind corbiculae, they must raid to obtain enough protein in their diet in the form of pollen and nectar.[4] Lestrimelitta limao secrete a lemon-scented alarm allomone, from which they receive their name, in order to conduct successful raids. L. limao are hypothesized to produce poisonous honey that is toxic if consumed by humans. Because robber bees are so rare and difficult to observe, there is a limited scope of information available.
- ^ Smith, F. (1863). "Descriptions of Brazilian honey bees belonging to the genera Melipona and Trigona, which were exhibited, together with samples of their honey and wax, in the Brazilian Court of the International Exhibition of 1862". Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society of London. 11 (6): 497–512. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2311.1863.tb01298.x.
- ^ Grüter, Christoph (2020). Stingless Bees: Their Behaviour, Ecology and Evolution. Fascinating Life Sciences. Springer New York. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-60090-7. ISBN 978-3-030-60089-1. S2CID 227250633.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Sakagami-1963was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Blum, M. W.; Crewe, R. M.; Kerr, W. E.; Keith, L. H.; Garrison, A. W.; Walker, M. M. (August 1970). "Citral in Stingless Bees:Isolation and Function in Trail-Laying and Robbing". Journal of Insect Physiology. 16 (8): 1637–1648. doi:10.1016/0022-1910(70)90263-5. PMID 5433728.