1053 Diversity of Social Wasps in the Campus of the “Universidade Federal de Viçosa” in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil by Gabriel de Castro Jacques1, Ancidériton Antonio de Castro1, Gabriely Köerich Souza1, Reinildes Silva-Filho1, Marcos M. de Souza1 & José Cola Zanuncio1* ABSTRACT Social wasps can be used as ecological indicators. However, the diversity of species of this group in Minas Gerais State, Brazil, is poorly studied, es- pecially in anthropized environments. The objective was to study diversity of these insects in the campus of the “Universidade Federal de Viçosa” in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, from May to June 2011 with two meth- odologies (attractive traps and active search). Eight hundred and eighty-nine individuals of social wasps of 10 genera and 25 species were collected. The high species richness found can be explained by the diverse environment of the area studied with greater availability of microhabitats, greater protection against predators, and high availability and diversity of food and substrates for nesting which may favor the coexistence of a greater number of species. In addition, combined use of two collecting methodologies provided a greater diversity of wasps captured. Key words: Vespidae, biodiversity, species richness. INTRODUCTION Hymenoptera species have different habits and levels of social complexity, including those of the family Vespidae that are important as pollinators (Hunt et al. 1991; Brodmann et al. 2008; Mello et al. 2011), predators (Prezoto & Machado 1999; Prezoto et al. 2006; Silveira et al. 2008; Gomes & Noll 2009) and bioindicators (Souza et al. 2010). This family includes solitary wasps (Euparigiinae, Masarinae and Eumeninae) and species with some degree of socialization (Stenogastrinae, Polistinae and Vespinae) (Elpino-Campos et al. 2007). 1 Departamento de Entomologia, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, 36570-000 Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. e-mail: gabrieljacques@yahoo.com.br, anciagro@gmail.com, gaby.florestal@gmail.com, rennefilho@gmail.com and magalhaescajubi@bol.com.br * Corresponding Author: zanuncio@ufv.br 1054 Sociobiolog y Vol. 59, No. 3, 2012 Eusocial wasps (Polistinae) are cosmopolitan and diverse in the Neotropics (Auad et al. 2010). Brazilian Polistinae are among the most widespread wasp group in South America, with 22 genera and 316 species of three tribes: Po- listini, Mischocyttarini and Epiponini (Prezoto et al. 2007). Many species of this subfamily are predators of insects and other arthropods (Richter 2000), but also an important food resource for insectivorous birds and ants (Kumano & Kasuya 2006). Social wasps are viable for biological control programs, but the survey and identification of these insects are the first step for integrated pest management programs (Prezoto et al. 2006). Degradation of natural environments results in losses of biological diver- sity, with wasp species being endangered before the study of basic aspects of their biolog y (Nascimento et al. 2004). This biodiversity must be known and evaluated in terms of number of species, distribution and interaction aspects to facilitate natural ecosystem preservation (Del-Claro 2004). Social wasps, due to their distribution, abundance and richness of interactions, are considered a special group (Prezoto et al. 2009), easily sampled because they forage and return to a central place (nest). Moreover, they are active in all seasons in most tropical ecosystems and can be sampled in a relatively short period (Kumar et al. 2009). Sensitivity of these wasps to changes in abiotic conditions (light, temperature and humidity) shows that they can be used as indicators of environmental quality (Souza et al. 2010). The surveying and identification of genera and species of animals and plants are important to know the natural resources available in a specific area and to understand ecological characteristics of an ecosystem (Elpino-Campos et al. 2007). Global destruction of rainforests highlights the importance of these studies (Buschini & Woiski 2008). The diversity of social wasp species in Brazil was studied in “Campos Rup- estres” (Silva-Pereira & Santos 2006), Brazilian Savanna (Elpino-Campos et al. 2007; Souza & Prezoto 2006), Amazon Rainforest (Silveira 2002; Silveira et al. 2008), Semidecidual Forest (Gomes & Noll 2009), Riparian Vegeta- tion (Souza et al. 2010; Pereira & Antonialli Junior 2011) and Mangrove, Atlantic Forest and Restinga Vegetation (Santos et al. 2007). However, the wasp fauna of Minas Gerais State, mainly in anthropized environments, is poorly studied. The objective was to obtain preliminary data on wasp diversity 1055 Jacques, G. C. et al. — Diversity of Social Wasps in Viçosa within the campus of the “Universidade Federal de Viçosa” in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. MATERIALS AND METHODS Social wasps were collected in the campus of the “Universidade Federal de Viçosa” (UFV) in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil from May to June 2011 using two methodologies. This area has very diverse anthropized envi- ronments including buildings, agriculture areas, artificial lakes and Atlantic Forest fragments. Attractive traps Traps were prepared with two-liter plastic bottles with three triangular lateral openings (2 x 2 x 2 cm) located 10 cm from their base (Souza & Pr- ezoto 2006). Attractive substances were: 1- natural passion fruit juice (Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa Deg.; Passifloraceae) with 1 kg of fruit mixed with 250 g of granu- lated sugar and two liters of water; 2- 250 g of sardine (Sardinella brasiliensis Steindachner 1789) with two liters of water, and 3- pure honey. Each bottle received 150 mL of attractive substance. Twenty bottles were used per attractive substance. These traps were set up at 1.5m high in different places in the campus “Universidade Federal de Viçosa”. Wasps were collected from the traps every seven days and preserved in 70% alcohol for identification. Active search Active searches were performed in the campus of the “Universidade Fed- eral de Viçosa”. Trunks and natural cavities (empty termite nests and rocks), broadleaf vegetation, flowers and buildings were inspected (Souza & Prezoto 2006; Elpino-Campos et al. 2007). The species collected were identified with keys (Richards 1978; Carpenter 2004); diversity and species dominance calculated using the Shannon-Wiener diversity index (H’) and the Berger-Parker dominance (D pb ), through the Dives program (Diversity of Species v2.0) at the base 10 logarithm (Rodrigues 2005). Identifications were confirmed by Dr. Orlando Tobias Silveira from Emílio Goeldi Museum of Belém, Pará State, Brazil. 1056 Sociobiolog y Vol. 59, No. 3, 2012 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Eight hundred and eighty-nine social wasps of 10 genera and 25 species were collected (Table 1). The number of Vespidae species was the sixth highest in collections of this group in Brazil (Table 2). Heterogeneous substrates may favor the coexistence of a greater number of species due to greater availability of microhabitats, protection against predators, and a high availability and diversity of food resources and substrates for nesting (Santos et al. 2007). In addition, combined use of collecting methods provides a greater diversity of wasps captured (Silveira 2002; Souza & Prezoto 2006; Elpino-Campos Table 1. Frequency of social wasp species collected in the campus of the “Universidade Federal de Viçosa” in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil through active search (AS) and attractive traps (AT) Species Frequency AS AT Total Agelaia multipicta (Haliday) 48 53 101 Agelaia vicina Saussure 0 295 295 Apoica pallens (F.) 0 1 1 Brachygastra lecheguana (Latreille) 7 0 7 Mischocyttarus atramentarius Zikán 6 0 6 Mischocyttarus sp.1 1 0 1 Mischocyttarus cassununga (Von. Ihering ) 24 219 243 Mischocyttarus drewseni Saussure 1 1 2 Mischocyttarus parallellogrammus Zikán 2 2 4 Mischocyttarus sp.2 2 0 2 Parachartergus fraternus (Gribodo) 1 0 1 Polistes actaeon Haliday 6 0 6 Polistes simillimus Zikán 16 0 16 Polistes versicolor Olivier 32 5 37 Polybia bifasciata Saussure 0 2 2 Polybia fastidiosuscula Saussure 38 8 46 Polybia ignobilis (Haliday) 0 6 6 Polybia jurinei Saussure 1 4 5 Polybia platycephala (Richards) 72 9 81 Polybia paulista (Von. Ihering ) 0 1 1 Polybia sericea (Olivier) 5 13 18 Polybia sp. 2 1 3 Protonectarina sylveirae (Saussure) 1 0 1 Protopolybia exígua (Saussure) 12 0 12 Synoeca cyanea (Fabricius) 1 0 1 279 620 899 1057 Jacques, G. C. et al. — Diversity of Social Wasps in Viçosa et al. 2007; Silva & Silveira 2009; Auad et al. 2010; Souza et al. 2010). Only sixteen of the species collected were present in a riparian area in the city of Barroso, Minas Gerais State (Souza et al. 2010), despite the distance of 160 km between the cities of Viçosa and Barroso. Records of new species of the Table 2. Comparison between total number of species in this research (*) and other studies in the literature Source Number of species Silveira 2002 (Amazon Rainforest) 79 Silva & Silveira 2009 (Amazon Rainforest) 65 Souza & Prezoto 2006 (Cerrado and Semidecidual Forest) 38 Souza et al. 2010 36 Elpino-Campos et al. 2007 (Cerrado) 29 * This research 26 Hermes & Köhler 2004 (Atlantic Forest) 25 Santos et al. 2009 (Cerrado) 19 Pereira & Antonialli Junior 2011 (Riparian Vegetation) 18 Santos et al. 2007 (Atlantic Forest) 18 Santos et al. 2007 (Restinga Vegetation) 16 Auad et al. 2010 (Silvipastoral System) 13 Silva-Pereira & Santos 2006 (Campos Rupestres) 11 Arab et al. 2010 (Atlantic Forest) 10 Santos et al. 2007 (Mangrove) 8 Gomes & Noll 2009 (Semidecidual Forest) 7 Silveira et al. 2008 (Amazon Rainforest) 6 Table 3. Richness, diversity and dominance calculated with active search (AS) and attractive traps (AT) of social wasps in the campus of the “Universidade Federal de Viçosa” in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil AS AT Total Species richness (S’) 21 15 26 Shannon-Wiener diversity index (H’) 0.9814 0.5753 0.8584 Berger-Parker dominance index (D pb ) 0.2581 0.4758 0.3281 1058 Sociobiolog y Vol. 59, No. 3, 2012 genus Mischocyttarus are due to a sum of factors such as small nests with few individuals. Moreover, this genus is the largest group of social wasps, with nine subgenera and 245 species. For this reason, surveys of richness and diversity can increase the chance of obtaining new records for this genus (Cooper 1998; Silveira et al. 2008). The diversity index of social wasps in the UFV campus was H’= 0.8584 and richness S’= 25, which was lower than those obtained in Atlantic Forest area (H’= 2.61) and with lower number of species (S’= 18) (Santos et al. 2007). This difference is explained by high dominance (D pb = 0.3281) of a few species in our study. In addition, the period of collections was cold and dry, which may interfere in the number of wasps collected and thus leading to dominance of a few species. The rainy season increases plant biomass and food resources such as nectar and prey (Auad et al. 2010). A greater number of species and colonies of wasps were reported in periods with higher tem- perature and rainfall (Souza & Prezoto 2006). Collection of social wasps in various locations at different times produced different insects even in areas with similar conditions. This is due to the fact that a number of species are represented by one or few individuals. Thus, the number of individuals per species and a list of species in the sample are im- portant, and may differ in the space and time (Buschini & Woiski 2008). Agelaia vicina Saussure and Mischocyttarus cassununga (Von. Ihering ) were the most collected species with over 60% of the total individuals sampled. Agelaia is the most common genus in Brazil (Arab et al. 2010). Nests of this genus were not observed but, some of its species can establish colonies with an estimated population up to one million adults (Zucchi et al. 1995), which increases the chances of capturing specimens of this group (Hunt et al. 2001). The high abundance of this genus was also reported in different ecosystems in Brazil (Gomes & Noll 2009; Arab et al. 2010; Pereira & Antonialli Junior 2011). Mischocyttarus cassununga, a species with a high degree of synanthropism and easily found near buildings, was the second most abundant and the most commonly found around the campus buildings. The high degree of anthropization enables this species to establish many colonies (Alvarenga et al. 2010). Moreover, the presence of more than one inseminated female per colony, with well developed ovaries and the ability to oviposit viable 1059 Jacques, G. C. et al. — Diversity of Social Wasps in Viçosa eggs enables a wider dispersal of M. cassununga (Murakami & Shima 2006; Murakami et al. 2009). Nests were found for 13 of the 25 species collected: Mischocyttarus atra- mentarius Zikán, Mischocyttarus cassununga (Von. Ihering ), Mischocyttarus sp.1, Mischocyttarus sp.2, Parachartergus fraternus (Gribodo), Polistes actaeon Haliday, Polistes simillimus Zikán, Polistes versicolor Olivier, Polybia fastid- iosuscula Saussure, Polybia platycephala (Richards), Protonectarina sylveirae (Saussure), Protopolybia exigua and Synoeca cyanea (Fabricius). This is due to the fact that nests of Mischocyttarus, Protopolybia, Polybia and Polistes are commonly found on buildings which facilitate their location (Alvarenga et al. 2010). The greater number of wasps collected with traps may be due to the cold and dry period of the survey where water availability became a survival factor, due to decreasing food resources (nectar and insects) (Elpino-Campos et al. 2007). Traps represented a resource to be explored during this period of the year when the water is used by the wasps for colony thermoregulation, while the nectar and other sugary substances are the main food item for adult wasps (Prezoto & Gobbi 2003). The total number of species collected and the Shannon-Wiener diversity (’) showed that the active searching methodolog y was more effective than the traps (Table 3). Ten species were collected only with this method. This was also observed in other studies (Silveira 2002; Souza & Prezoto 2006; Elpino- Campos et al. 2007; Pereira & Antonialli Junior 2011). However, only five species were collected with traps which demonstrates the importance of active search. Apoica pallens (F.) is generally captured with attractive traps because it forages mostly at night (Hunt et al. 1995; Pickett & Wenzel 2007) which makes it less likely to be captured during the day by active search. These results show the importance of using combined sampling methods. CONCLUSIONS Social wasp fauna showed high diversity in the campus of the “Universi- dade Federal de Viçosa” in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, and with high diversification and species richness. The number of species was higher than that observed by other authors, even with the shorter collection period of social wasps and unfavorable weather conditions. Moreover, the active search 1060 Sociobiolog y Vol. 59, No. 3, 2012 and attractive traps showed the importance of using more than one method to register the largest possible number of species of these wasps. 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