Floral resources of Epicharis flava (Hymenoptera, Apidae) in an urban area, detected from the pollen spectrum in the scopae

1) ABSTRACTBees are the main pollinators of terrestrial ecosystems and, among them, we can highlight oil-collecting bees, which show different morphological and behavioral adaptations associated with plants that offer this floral resource. Floral oils are used in provisioning, building, and lining the brood cell and nests. The genus Epicharis has a neotropical distribution and females are closely associated with plants of the Malpighiaceae family, with the highest number of records in species of the genus Byrsonima. However, due to the strong seasonality of adult activity and solitary behavior, knowledge about important floral resources to Epicharis bees is still scarce. In order to identify important resource sources for a widely distributed species, the current work aimed to analyze the pollen spectrum of Epicharis flava Friese in an urban area in the Atlantic Forest domain. For this, females of E. flava were captured during five days while visiting flowers of Byrsonima sericea DC. (Malpighiaceae) in an urban area, and the pollen load in their scopae was submitted to acetolysis processing for further analysis under the microscope. In total, 71 pollen types were found, with emphasis on Fabaceae, Solanaceae, Bignoniaceae, and Malpighiaceae, considered sources of nectar, pollen, and floral oils. This study made it possible, through the analysis of pollen in the scopae, to identify a list of potentially important species for the maintenance of E. flava populations. This information is necessary for the management of urban green areas, aiming at increasing biodiversity. In addition, these data can serve as a base for further research on oil-collecting bees in the Neotropics.Keywords: floral oilpollinator-plant interactionsolitary beeurban environmentDisclaimerAs a service to authors and researchers we are providing this version of an accepted manuscript (AM). Copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proofs will be undertaken on this manuscript before final publication of the Version of Record (VoR). During production and pre-press, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal relate to these versions also. Additional informationNotes on contributorsVanessa Ribeiro MatosVANESSA R MATOS has a degree in Biological Sciences from the UNIJORGE, a master's degree and PhD in Botany from the State University of Feira de Santana. Has developed research at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute acting in the identification of pollen found in samples collected from Island Barro Colorado (Panama). Has a postdoctoral fellow at the Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT), conducting research on palynological identification: the modern (quaternary) and the fossil (tertiary and ancient). Currently doing a post doctorate at the Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense Darcy Ribeiro in the area of Applied Ecology.Maria Cristina GaglianoneMARIA CRISTINA GAGLIANONE has a degree in Biological Sciences, master's degree and PhD in Entomology from the University of São Paulo. She is an Associated Professor at the Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense Darcy Ribeiro and supervise students in Ecology. Her main research interests are bee ecology and bee-plant interactions in natural and agricultural ecosystems.