Austroplebeia essingtoni
Austroplebeia essingtoni is a small eusocial stingless bee first described by Cockerell in 1905 [2] and it is found in Australia (Northern areas of Western Australia and Northern Territory). They are one of the smallest stingless bees in Australia [3] and can survive in very arid areas with annual rainfalls down to 300 mm.[4]
| Austroplebeia essingtoni | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Two different morphs of workers (first two columns) and drone (third column) of A. essingtoni. The black arrows point at the characteristic genitalia with bent tips of the drones. | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Apidae |
| Genus: | Austroplebeia |
| Species: | A. essingtoni |
| Binomial name | |
| Austroplebeia essingtoni Cockerell, 1905 | |
 | |
| Map showing the estimated current distribution of A. essingtoni in Australia | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
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Etymology
The name 'essingtoni' was given because the first specimens were collected from Port Essington on the north coast of Arnhem Land, Australia in 1840.[4]
Description and identification
The workers (3.2-3.9mm) usually have distinct cream bands on the side and rear of the thorax and broad cream marking on the lower face.[4] Most workers are noticeably smaller than those of the other Austroplebeia species across their distribution.[4] Their colouring varies, workers in the Hamersley Ranges are brighter, with pale yellow bands on the thorax, legs and abdomen as well as bright patterns on the lower face. Other populations in contrast, such as the ones in coastal areas, are much darker. Males from this species are brightly coloured and have unusual bent tips on their genitalia.[4]
The characteristic male genitalia with bent tips of A. essingtoni
Nest building
A. essingtoni usually nests in small to medium hollow trees (9–30 cm diameter at nest level) but many nest in wall cavities or crevices in cliffs. Similar to A. cassiae and A. magna, A. essingtoni builds a short nest entrance tunnel.[4] The cells in the broods are loosely connected together into an irregular structure called a "cluster". The pollen and honey is stored in spherical or oval shaped pots with thin walls.[4]
The short entrance tunnel of A. essingtoni
Human use
Preliminary attempts to establish this species in hives have been successful but propagation by division has not achieved much success.[3]
References
- Dollin, Anne E.; Dollin, Leslie J.; Rasmussen, Claus (2015-11-23). "Australian and New Guinean Stingless Bees of the Genus Austroplebeia Moure (Hymenoptera: Apidae)—a revision". Zootaxa. 4047 (1): 1–73. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4047.1.1. ISSN 1175-5334. PMID 26624733.
- Cockerell, T. D. A. (August 1905). "XXVI.—Descriptions and Records of Bees.—I". Annals and Magazine of Natural History. 16 (92): 216–225. doi:10.1080/03745480509443672. ISSN 0374-5481.
- Heard, Tim (2016). The Australian native bee book : keeping stingless bee hives for pets, pollination and sugarbag honey. West End, Brisbane, Qld. ISBN 978-0-646-93997-1. OCLC 910915206.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Dollin, Anne (2016). "Meet the Austroplebeia species -A Guide to Aussie Bee's Revision Paper" (PDF). Aussie Bee. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2016-03-29. Retrieved 21 April 2021.