First detection of Deformed wing virus DWV in Xylocopa augusti larvae (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in Argentina

Abstract

Bees play an important role as pollinators of wild and cultivated plants, pollinating approximately 70% to 80% of the crop (Nabhan and Buchmann, 1997). The genus Xylocopa Latreille (Apidae: Xylocopini) comprises approximately 470 described species and are distributed worldwide, most of them occurring in tropical and subtropical areas (Michener, 2007). These bees are commonly known as carpenter bees because they build nests in dead wood, hollow internodes of bamboo stems, culms of herbaceous plants and structural timbers (Hurd and Moure, 1963). In general, the internal structure of the nests can be branched or linear, according to the nesting substrate, and with a single entrance connected to a system of tunnels. The brood is reared in individual and isolated cells until adult emergence. The female builds a linear series of cells throughout tunnels, each provisioned with a mixture of pollen and nectar (?bee bread?), then places the egg above the mass and finally, closes the cell with a partition made of a mixture of sawdust and saliva. Several natural enemies are associated with large carpenter bees, including predators, parasites and parasitoids (Hurd, 1978). However, little is known about the pathogens that affect Xylocopa species; Singh et al. (2010) reported the presence of two virus species affecting adults of Xylocopa virginica in the USA, the specimens collected from flowering plants, were positive for Deformed wing virus (DWV) and Black queen cell virus (BQCV). Here we present evidence of the first detection of DWV in the carpenter bee Xylocopa augusti Lepeletier in Argentina.