Melipona quadrifasciata
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
Melipona quadrifasciata is a species of eusocial, stingless bee of the order Hymenoptera. It is native to the southeastern coastal states of Brazil, where it is more commonly known as mandaçaia, which means "beautiful guard," as there is always a bee at the narrow entrance of the nest. M. quadrifasciata constructs mud hives in the hollows of trees to create thin passages that only allow one bee to pass at a time. Because they are stingless bees, M. quadrifasciata are often used as pollinators in greenhouses, outperforming honey bees in efficiency and leading to overall larger yields of fruits that are heavier, larger, and contain more seeds.
Melipona quadrifasciata is a member of the family Apidae and the order Hymenoptera. M. quadrifasciata is in the subfamily Meliponini which is commonly referred to as "stingless bees". The genus Melipona includes nearly 50 other species. M. quadrifasciata can be categorized into two subspecies: M. quadrifasciata quadrifasciata which occupies the northern range of the species, and M. quadrifasciata anthidioides which are more often found in the southern range. However, there is a large hybrid area where the subspecies overlap.
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| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tijuca National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Curitiba | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | São Paulo | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | Porto Alegre | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | Rio de Janeiro | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Belo Horizonte | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Four-Striped Melipona sighting in São Paulo on a given day, based on 44 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 164th most-seen of the 832 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April–June, August and October–February
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Four-Striped Melipona in São Paulo on a given day, against under 5% in March, July and September, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Four-Striped Melipona sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 5 cities where we can rate Four-Striped Melipona sightings, São Paulo ranks 2nd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Curitiba (Brazil, about 10%).
Same family: Apidae
The closest relatives of the Four-Striped Melipona that you can see in São Paulo (family Apidae, Honey Bees, Bumble Bees, and Allies) are Narrow Stingless Bee (about 20%), Spiny-Legged Stingless Bee (about 20%) and Nannotrigona testaceicornis (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Four-Striped Melipona is recorded against all the insects logged in São Paulo (44 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
