Trigona spinipes (Pegones) [ESP/ENGL]

Today I am back to this beautiful Insects Of The World community; to share with you the images of a group of melipona bees (without sting), corresponding to the species Trigona spinipes, which in Venezuela are colloquially known as pegones. I took these images yesterday, in my backyard, when I observed these beautiful insects sucking flowers from my pink pomegranate plant (Punica granatum).

The rains that have fallen recently have allowed my plants to revive. The pomegranate plant has given us hundreds of flowers that adorn its greenery. It is beautiful to see so many orange flowers which serve as food for various species, one of these being the Trigona spinipes bees, who go crazy with these flowers, almost entering ecstasy while sucking them. I have also seen this curious behavior in Apis bees when they suck guava flowers (Psidium guajava). Next I share two photos of my pomegranate tree, so you can see the number of flowers:

As I approached the flowers, I could observe in some up to three bees sucking simultaneously, although it is more common to see them in pairs. It should be noted that in general, bees are very selective in terms of their food. Each species has preferences for certain flowers, they do not suck all the flowers available in their habitat, unless the food sources are very scarce, then they will vary their diet.

A los pegones o Trigona spinipes, les encantan las flores de Granada, como también las de topocho (Musa paradisiaca L.), creo que les gustan los dos tipos de flores por igual. Lamentablemente no sé en qué parte tienen su colmena, sé que es en mi solar, pero presumo que es en las ramas altas de los árboles, creo que en una planta de tamarindo que aún queda allí.

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Pegones or Trigona spinipes love Granada flowers, as well as topocho flowers (Musa paradisiaca L.), I think they like both types of flowers equally. Unfortunately I don't know where they have their hive, I know it's in my backyard, but I presume it's in the high branches of the trees, I think it's in a tamarind plant that's still there.

Quería también comentar, que en mi país, Venezuela, estas abejas tienen muy mala reputación, muchas personas dicen que pica, que son urticantes, pero nada más lejos de la verdad. Estas abejas pueden ser algo territoriales, y para evitar la intromisión de algún individuo en su hábitat, tratarán de alejarlo enredándose en el cabello de las personas o buscando introducirse en sus oídos, ojos u orificios nasales, pero jamás picarán o irritarán. Prueba de ello soy yo, pues suelo manipular estos insectos sin problema alguno. Así que les hago un llamado para que no los maten cuando los vean, simplemente déjenlos hacer su valiosísimo trabajo, como es el de mantener la vida en el planeta.

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I also wanted to comment that in my country, Venezuela, these bees have a very bad reputation, many people say that they sting, but nothing could be further from the truth. These bees can be somewhat territorial, and to avoid the intrusion of an individual into their habitat, they will try to drive it away by entangling themselves in people's hair or seeking to enter their ears, eyes or nostrils, but they will never sting or irritate. Proof of this is me, because I usually handle these insects without any problem. So I call on you not to kill them when you see them, just let them do their invaluable work, which is to maintain life on the planet.

Aquí finalizo mi post de hoy, en el cual quise compartir la bella labor de uno de los insectos más importantes en el mundo, como son las abejas, en este caso abejas nativas, abejas meliponas, (Trigona spinipes). Saludos a todos, y recuerden que los insectos son importantísimos para la vida en nuestro planeta.

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Here I end my post today, in which I wanted to share the beautiful work of one of the most important insects in the world, such as bees, in this case native bees, melipona bees, (Trigona spinipes). Greetings to all, and remember that insects are very important for life on our planet.

Otros posts en los que hablo de las abejas / Other posts where I talk about bees

• Part I

• Part II

• Part III

• Inicio de un panal de aricas / Start of an arica bee hive

• Diario y Fresco 9/366 // Daily and Fresh 9/366 (aquí hablo de las abejas verdes / here I am talking about green bees)

• [ESP/ENGL] Variación en la dieta de Apis mellifera / Variation in Apis mellifera diet

• Adrenas bees / Abejas Adrenas[ESP/ENGL]

• House for meliponas bees (Part 1)

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Fuentes de las Imágenes / Image sources

• Todas las fotos de este post son de mi autoría y fueron tomadas con mi teléfono Xiomi REDMI 8 A // These photos are my own, and were taken with a Xiomi REDMI 8 A phone

• Los divisores son cortesía de @eve66 quien comparte bellos diseños que embellecen el maquetado de nuestras publicaciones. // The dividers used are courtesy of @eve66 who shares beautiful designs that embellish the layout of our post.

• En caso de que se requiera utilizar el contenido o las imágenes de este post y de mis otras publicaciones, agradecería que se hiciera referencia a mi autoría (Fabiola Martínez) y se citara el enlace correspondiente. Gracias. // In case it is required to use the content or images of this post and of my other publications, I would appreciate if you could refer to my authorship (Fabiola Martínez) and cite the corresponding link. Thanks.

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