  From muon spin rotation measurements on under- to overdoped Bi-2212 crystals
we obtain evidence for a two-stage transition of the vortex matter as a
function of temperature. The first transition is well known and related to the
irreversibility line (IL). The second one is located below the IL and has not
been previously observed. It occurs for all three sets of crystals and is
unrelated to the vortex mobility. Our data are consistent with a two-stage
melting scenario where the intra-planar melting of the vortex lattice and the
inter-planar decoupling of the vortex lines occur independently.
