Post-embryonic development of the antennal sensilla in Melipona quadrifasciata anthidioides (Hymenoptera: Meliponini)

The sensilla are sensory organs formed by cuticular and cellular structures specialized in reception of chemical and physical stimuli from the environment and transmission to the insect's central nervous system. In function of the great concentration of sensilla, the antennae are the main organs for interaction between bees and with the environment. This work studied the presence of antennal sensilla in the different phases of pupal development of the stingless bee Melipona quadrifasciata anthidioides by means of scanning electron microscopy and light microscopy. The results showed that antennal sensilla begin their development in the transition of the prepupae to the white-eyed pupae and finish it in the pigmented-body pupae phase. The antennal sensilla were exposed to the environment in the black-eyed pupae when the old cuticle is completely digested, suggesting that only in the final pupal phases can these bees perceive the environmental stimuli.