Nutritive value and apparent digestibility of bee-collected and bee-storedpollen in the stingless bee, Scaptotrigona postica Latr. (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Meliponini)

In Meliponini bees, pollen is stored inside the hive. We compared the nutri tional value and apparent digestibility of bee-collected and bee-stored pol len of Scaptotrigona postica. The results showed no differences in nutritio nal value and apparent digestibility between bee-collected and bee-stored p ollen, suggesting that the storage process of pollen grains do not play a r ole in these parameters. These results are discussed in relation to other a spects of pollen storage, such as food conservation and/or organoleptic pro perties of stored pollen.