Original paper

Orchid pollinaria (Orchidaceae) attached to stingless bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in Dominican amber

Poinar, George

Abstract

Orchid pollinaria attached to two stingless bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in Dominican amber are characterized. A pollinarium attached to the eye of a worker Proplebeia dominicana Wille & Chandler is described as Rudiculites dominicana gen. n., sp. n. and tentatively assigned to the Tribe Cranichideae of the Subfamily Orchidoideae. Another pollinarium attached to the mouthparts of a worker P. dominicana is described as Globosites apicola gen. n., sp. n. and tentatively assigned to the Tribe Cymbidieae of the Subfamily Epidendroideae. These new records show that diverse orchid lineages were being pollinated by stingless bees in the Tertiary Dominican amber forest.

Keywords

apidaepollinariaproplebeiaorchidsinsect pollinatorshispaniola