Morphometric Divergences between Populations of Melipona subnitida Ducke Hymenoptera

A morphometric study of this bee species reared in artificial conditions in the Brazilian semi-arid region was carried out in order to verify divergence in its morphology, so as to identify possible variations in this species. The bees were collected from different stingless bee breeders in two localities in the municipality of São João do Rio do Peixe, Paraíba-PB. A total of 200 tenements were assessed and 30 with the highest percentage of production were identified, from which 10 were randomly selected for the level of insect collection in each location. A total of 60 worker bees were collected, with 3 bees from each tenement. The morphometric parameters evaluated were: transverse length, longitudinal length, collecting legs, anterior wings, posterior wings and weight per insect. Significant differences were found between all the characteristics evaluated, when it came to individuals from different localities, thus corroborating the existence of morphometric variability between the localities evaluated. The differences found in morphometrics show that these techniques are important tools in assessing sustainability.