About 40% of Apis mellifera subspecies live in the Mediterranean area. Medibees – a project supported by PRIMA – aims to study and compare the subspecies of this region and develop sustainable management techniques for Mediterranean conditions. A main area of research is the resilience against climate change. In this event, open for the general…
Honey bees are essential for crop and wild plant pollination. However, many countries have reported high annual colony losses caused by multiple possible stressors. Diseases, particularly those caused by viruses, are a major cause of colony losses. However, little is known about the prevalence of honey bee pathogens, particularly virus prevalence, in Egyptian honey bees.…
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…
In the European honey bee (Apis mellifera), the olfactory system is essential for foraging and intraspecific communication via pheromones. Honey bees are equipped with a large repertoire of olfactory receptors belonging to the insect odorant receptor (OR) family. Previous studies have indicated that the transcription level of a few OR types including OR11, a receptor…
To avoid potential adverse side effects of chemical plant protection products, microbial pest control products (MPCP) are commonly applied as biological alternatives. This study aimed to evaluate the biosafety of a MPCP with the active organism Bacillus thuringiensis ssp. aizawai (strain: ABTS-1857). An in-hive feeding experiment was performed under field-realistic conditions to examine the effect…
Abstract This article presents managed honey bee colony loss rates over winter 2019/20 resulting from using the standardised COLOSS questionnaire in 37 countries. Six countries were from outside Europe, including, for the first time in this series of articles, New Zealand. The 30,491 beekeepers outside New Zealand reported 4.5% of colonies with unsolvable queen problems,…
Abstract Varroa mites are highly attracted to drone brood of honey bees (Apis mellifera), as it increases their chance of successful reproduction. Therefore, drone brood removal with trap frames is common practice among beekeepers in Europe and part of sustainable varroa control. However, it is considered labour-intensive, and there are doubts about the effectiveness of…
Foraging ecology of Asian honey bees Background: The ecology of the Western honey bee (Apis mellifera) has been studied in some detail, but next to nothing is known about the foraging ecology and mechanisms of coexistence of Asian honey bee species (A. cerana, A. dorsata, A. florea). Further, it is unknown how the large-scale transformation…
Abstract Pollinating bees are stressed by highly variable environmental conditions, malnutrition, parasites and pathogens, but may also by getting in contact with microorganisms or entomopathogenic nematodes that are used to control plant pests and diseases. While foraging for water, food, or nest material social as well as solitary bees have direct contact or even consume…