Egypt has an ongoing long history with beekeeping, which started with the ancientEgyptians making various reliefs and inscriptions of beekeeping on their tombs and temples. TheEgyptian honeybee (Apis mellifera lamarckii) is an authentic Egyptian honeybee subspecies utilized inapiculture. A. m. lamarckii is a distinct honeybee subspecies that has a particular body color, size, andhigh levels…
With an almost global distribution, Varroa destuctor is the leading cause of weakening and loss of honey bee colonies. New substances are constantly being tested in order to find those that will exhibit high anti-Varroa efficacy at low doses/concentrations, without unwanted effects on bees. Lithium (Li) salts stood out as candidates based on previous research.…
In a cage experiment, lithium chloride (LiCl) and lithium citrate hydrate (Li-cit) were tested for varroacidal efficacy and impact on bees. Treatment with Li-cit (4, 7.5, 10, and 25 mM) resulted in 100% varroacidal efficacy and 100% bee survival. Due to better results in the cage experiment, Li-cit was further tested in field experiments on full-sized…