Molecular Phylogeny of Stingless Bees: A Framework For Historical Biogeography and Behavior

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The highly social bees represent a peak in the evolution of social living and sophisticated communication systems. Such bees are represented predominantly by the honey bees (Apini) and the stingless bees (Meliponini). The primary aim of this project is to reconstruct a well supported tree of phylogenetic relationships of the stingless bees on a world scale so as to ultimately decipher the origins and development of one of the most fascinating communication systems known among animals: the dance language of the honey bee. The dance of a returning forager laden with nectar and pollen encodes for other colony members the position of the most rewarding flowers outside the nest. Unfortunately, because all species of honey bees living today possess a dance language and are the only social insects to have acquired this extraordinary communication system, they cannot be studied directly for insights into how the dance language evolved. One must instead turn to their near relatives, the stingless bees, for insights. Indeed, stingless bees possess exceptionally diverse mechanisms of forager communication among colony mates, which can be studied to elucidate possible evolutionary pathways that may have led to the dance. Interpreting this pathway requires knowledge of the evolutionary history of the diverse genera and subgenera that make up the stingless bees. For this project, the phylogeny of approximately 50 subgenera representing 225 species will be reconstructed from DNA sequences of five gene fragments that have been shown by preliminary research to be excellent for resolving relationships of stingless bees. The five genes include a mitochondrial gene (16S rRNA) and four nuclear genes (EF-1alpha, opsin, arginine kinase and wingless). A large number of species have been collected for sequencing and remaining groups will be collected during the course of the project, primarily from Latin America and New Guinea. Standard procedures for DNA sequencing will be used and preliminary computer analyses of pilot molecular data indicate these five genes will yield a well supported phylogeny. To understand the stunning communication system of the honey bee, we must probe into the workings and mechanisms of close relatives, the stingless bees, for evolutionary clues. This requires a phylogeny of the stingless bees, which will be developed during the course of this research project. Ongoing research by laboratories around the world on recruitment communication systems will be advanced in light of this well supported phylogeny. This evolutionary framework promises insights into convergent pathways and historical constraints in the development of precise language, and a rare opportunity to reveal the interplay between history and adaptation in the evolution of such language. The training and educational components of the project will provide a PhD student with state-of-the-art tools and experience for establishing a career in the field of systematics and tropical insect biodiversity. An undergraduate from an underprivileged background will have the opportunity to undertake independent research that has the potential to lead to a stimulating career in biology. This research will contribute to an understanding of the biodiversity of one of the world's most important pollinators in tropical rain forests. Many species of stingless bees remain to be discovered, named and described. In developing countries, increased knowledge of stingless bee diversity has the potential to stimulate new economic development through growth of stingless bee honey production in rural areas.