Español:
Los antófilos, (Anthophila, gr. "que ama las flores") conocidos comúnmente como abejas, son un clado de insectos himenópteros, sin ubicación en categoría taxonómica, dentro de la superfamilia Apoidea. Se trata de un linaje monofilético con más de 20.000 especies conocidas de abejas.
Las abejas al igual que las hormigas evolucionaron a partir de avispas. Los antepasados de las abejas eran miembros de la familia Crabronidae y eran depredadores de insectos. Es posible que las primeras abejas se hayan alimentado del polen que cubría a algunas de sus presas y que gradualmente hayan empezado a alimentar a sus crías con polen en vez de insectos.
Hay muchas más especies que aún no han sido descritas. Se las encuentra en todos los continentes excepto en la Antártida, están en todos los hábitats donde hay plantas con flores (magnoliofitas o angiospermas). Están adaptadas para alimentarse de polen y néctar, usando el primero fundamentalmente como alimento para las larvas y el segundo como material energético. La especie mejor conocida por todos es la abeja doméstica (Apis mellifera), a veces simplemente llamada "abeja". Esta especie es un insecto social que vive en enjambres formados por tres clases de individuos: reina, obreras y zánganos. Sin embargo, la mayoría de las especies de abejas son solitarias, es decir que no forman enjambres. Existen también un número de especies semisociales, con capacidad de formar colonias, por ejemplo los abejorros. Estas colonias no llegan a ser tan grandes ni duraderas como las de la abeja doméstica.
Polinización:
Las abejas son los polinizadores más importantes de las plantas con flores o magnoliófitas. Se calcula que la tercera parte de los alimentos humanos son polinizados por insectos, fundamentalmente abejas.
La mayoría de las abejas son de cuerpo velludo con pelos plumosos; llevan una carga electrostática. Todo esto ayuda a que el polen se adhiera a su cuerpo. Con sus patas transfieren el polen a las canastas de polen que pueden ser de dos tipos:escopas o corbículas. Algunas especies de abejas son muy especializadas y colectan polen de unas pocas especies de plantas, otras son generalistas y visitan muchos tipos de flores diferentes. Pero en general visitan flores de una sola especie por un período de tiempo antes de ir a otra especie, lo cual es beneficioso para las plantas que requieren polen de la misma especie para su fecundación. La abeja posee dos antenas (órganos del olfato), que le sirven para localizar las flores, y dos pares de alas, muy delgadas, que permiten a algunas especies, largos vuelos de hasta 12 km.
Evolución:
La abeja fósil más antigua conocida (encontrada en ámbar de Birmania y descrita en 2006) pertenece al Cretácico temprano, presenta caracteres muy primitivos que la relacionan con las avispas. Se la denominó Melittosphex burmensis y se calcula que su edad es de alrededor de 100 millones de años. Tiene caracteres especializados, apomorfias, típicos de Anthophila o sea de abejas, pero además conserva dos caracteres ancestrales o plesiomorfias de las patas (dos espolones tibiales y un basitarso delgado), éstos son caracteres de transición entre las abejas y otros grupos de himenópteros. Otra abeja fósil descubierta en ámbar es Cretotrigona prisca de Nueva Jersey, Estados Unidos; su edad se calcula entre 65 y 75 millones de años, a fines del Cretácico o sea alrededor de 30 millones de años más reciente que Melittosphex burmensis. Es un miembro de la subfamilia Meliponinae en la familia Apidae y es considerada una especie más avanzada evolutivamente.
English:
Is a genus Bombus Hymenoptera Apidae family that includes known by the common name or bumblebee bumblebee species; although the latter common name also refers to another order entirely different insects , flies ( see eg hunter hornet bees). Also known as a grasshopper , although this name may refer to the carpenters bumblebees (mostly in Venezuela ) or grasshoppers.
Bumblebees are robust , hairy , black, many have yellow, white or orange in some cases bands. The hair that covers most of the body is silky, with branched , plumose setae .
Females ( queens and workers ) differ Carpenters bumblebees by the presence of pollen pollen basket or basket on the hind legs , a specialized organ pollen collection . The bumble bees are relatively large 20 mm or more. The queens are larger than workers and drones . They feed mainly on nectar and collect pollen to feed their young, like their relatives the honey bees.
The tongue or proboscis is composed of several mouthpieces forming a complex tube allowing suction capillary nectar . At rest and during flight folded parts of the mouthparts under the chin.
They salivary glands in the chest and use the saliva to mix with the pollen. Also mixing it with other ingredients used for nest building and containers to store honey and pollen.
In the abdomen there are glands that produce wax used for nest building and containers to store honey, pollen and brood.
Like other arthropods , blood or hemolymph is contained in an open circulation system. This means that the internal organs are bathed by the hemolymph . The aorta or "heart" is a tube located dorsally typing and pushes the hemolymph , so there is a circulation system .
The silky hair catches the pollen very efficiently. It also serves as insulator layer that allows them to live in colder conditions than many other bees .
Only females have stinger, like many other Hymenoptera. Males do not have that defense , nor have corbiculae since not collect pollen . However, the tibia of hind legs has an appearance similar to that of females.
Generally visit flowers frequented by bees type , melitofílicas . They can travel up to a kilometer or two from the nest in search of groups of flowers. They tend to repeatedly visit the same set of flowers every day for the duration of pollen and nectar. Reach flight speeds of 54 km / hour.
When they reach a flower can extract nectar using their long tongue oglosa . Some bumblebees turn to pierce the base of the corolla of a flower where the nectar is hidden ; and do not benefit because pollination flower ( nectar theft ) does not occur. However, they are excellent pollinators of many other flowers of other kinds.
Bumblebees and a number of species of bees, but not honey bees , are capable of buzz pollination . This process is used in those flowers whose anthers are dehiscent and contain a pore that releases pollen when vibrated at the flower. Thus extracted pollen from plants of the family Solanaceae (potato, tomato, snuff , etc. . ) And the family Ericaceae ( azalea, blueberry , etc.).
Bumblebee 's body is covered in pollen, in part for his hairiness and partly because of its electrostatic charge. Brush the pollen and transfer it to the corbiculae or pollen baskets of the hind legs after wet it with a mixture of saliva and nectar.
Bumblebee returns to the nest and deposits its load of pollen and nectar in the receptacles. Nectar usually remains quite liquid, not concentrated as honey, so it has greater utility for human benefit.
His hairy cover makes them more resistant to cold than other species allowing them to live at higher latitudes and altitudes. Although also a few species are found in tropical or subtropical areas. Also another resource to regulate temperature are property of shivering , vibrating flight muscles generating heat and a circulation system that allows them to heat the thoracic flight muscles in preference to the abdomen, when they need to. Instead, when they need to protect their young from the cold , regulate the circulation in the abdomen so that hotter and stays with him covering his offspring.
Bumblebees are robust , hairy , black, many have yellow, white or orange in some cases bands. The hair that covers most of the body is silky, with branched , plumose setae .
Females ( queens and workers ) differ Carpenters bumblebees by the presence of pollen pollen basket or basket on the hind legs , a specialized organ pollen collection . The bumble bees are relatively large 20 mm or more. The queens are larger than workers and drones . They feed mainly on nectar and collect pollen to feed their young, like their relatives the honey bees.
Biology:
The tongue or proboscis is composed of several mouthpieces forming a complex tube allowing suction capillary nectar . At rest and during flight folded parts of the mouthparts under the chin.
They salivary glands in the chest and use the saliva to mix with the pollen. Also mixing it with other ingredients used for nest building and containers to store honey and pollen.
In the abdomen there are glands that produce wax used for nest building and containers to store honey, pollen and brood.
Like other arthropods , blood or hemolymph is contained in an open circulation system. This means that the internal organs are bathed by the hemolymph . The aorta or "heart" is a tube located dorsally typing and pushes the hemolymph , so there is a circulation system .
The silky hair catches the pollen very efficiently. It also serves as insulator layer that allows them to live in colder conditions than many other bees .
Only females have stinger, like many other Hymenoptera. Males do not have that defense , nor have corbiculae since not collect pollen . However, the tibia of hind legs has an appearance similar to that of females.
Foraging:
Generally visit flowers frequented by bees type , melitofílicas . They can travel up to a kilometer or two from the nest in search of groups of flowers. They tend to repeatedly visit the same set of flowers every day for the duration of pollen and nectar. Reach flight speeds of 54 km / hour.
When they reach a flower can extract nectar using their long tongue oglosa . Some bumblebees turn to pierce the base of the corolla of a flower where the nectar is hidden ; and do not benefit because pollination flower ( nectar theft ) does not occur. However, they are excellent pollinators of many other flowers of other kinds.
Bumblebees and a number of species of bees, but not honey bees , are capable of buzz pollination . This process is used in those flowers whose anthers are dehiscent and contain a pore that releases pollen when vibrated at the flower. Thus extracted pollen from plants of the family Solanaceae (potato, tomato, snuff , etc. . ) And the family Ericaceae ( azalea, blueberry , etc.).
Bumblebee 's body is covered in pollen, in part for his hairiness and partly because of its electrostatic charge. Brush the pollen and transfer it to the corbiculae or pollen baskets of the hind legs after wet it with a mixture of saliva and nectar.
Bumblebee returns to the nest and deposits its load of pollen and nectar in the receptacles. Nectar usually remains quite liquid, not concentrated as honey, so it has greater utility for human benefit.
Habitat:
His hairy cover makes them more resistant to cold than other species allowing them to live at higher latitudes and altitudes. Although also a few species are found in tropical or subtropical areas. Also another resource to regulate temperature are property of shivering , vibrating flight muscles generating heat and a circulation system that allows them to heat the thoracic flight muscles in preference to the abdomen, when they need to. Instead, when they need to protect their young from the cold , regulate the circulation in the abdomen so that hotter and stays with him covering his offspring.
No hay comentarios.:
Publicar un comentario