Tetragonula carbonaria
| Tetragonula carbonaria | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Superfamily: | Apoidea |
| Family: | Apidae |
| Subfamily: | Apinae |
| Tribe: | Meliponini |
| Genus: | Tetragonula |
| Species: | T. carbonaria |
| Binomial name | |
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Tetragonula carbonaria Smith, 1854 |
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| The range of Tetragonula carbonaria. | |
| Synonyms | |
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Trigona angophorae Cockerell, T.D.A. 1912 |
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Trigona angophorae Cockerell, T.D.A. 1912
Tetragonula carbonaria (previously known as Trigona carbonaria) is a stingless bee, endemic to the north-east coast of Australia. Its common name is sugarbag bee. The bee is known to pollinate orchid species, such as Dendrobium lichenastrum, D. toressae, and D. speciosum. It has been identified as an insect that collects pollen from the cycad, Cycas media. They are also known for their small body size, reduced wing venation, and highly developed social structure comparable to honey bees.
T. carbonaria forms honeycombs in their nests. The bee produces an edible honey; the whole nest is sometimes eaten by Indigenous Australians. The bees "mummify" invasive small hive beetles (Aethina tumida) that enter the nest by coating and immobilizing the invaders in wax, resin, and mud or soil from the nest.
Twenty-one genera of stingless bees (Apidae family) are described worldwide. As the name would suggest, the stings of these bees are vestigial and useless in defence. About 14 species are found in Australia, mostly in the tropical north. T. carbonaria is one of the few exceptions, in which they are found as far south as Bega in southern New South Wales .Stingless bees and honey bees are thought to have evolved from a common ancestor, like bumblebees, which would explain their similarities in social behavior. Some of these similarities are co-operative brood care, and having different castes of queens, workers, and drones. The workers are infertile females, while the drones are males.
The eusocial stingless bees (Apidae, Apinae, Meliponini) comprise about 374 species. Two genera occur in Australia, with Tetragonula being one of them. Tetragonula is the largest genus of stingless bees, with T. carbonaria being one of roughly 150 species in this genus. Only minor structural differences are seen at the species level of the genus Tetragonula. T. carbonaria is nearly identical to T. hockingsi, besides a few differences in their nest architecture.
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Wikipedia