Here, we cover a wide range of methods currently in use and recommended in modern queen rearing, selection, and breeding. The recommendations are meant to serve as stand-ards for scientific and practical beekeeping purposes. The basic conditions and different management techniques for queen rearing are described, including recommendations for suitable technical equipment. As the success…
Bee venom (BV) extraction has become a standardized practice, characterized by being safe, simple, and causing no harm to bees. Though it demonstrated significant antimicrobial activity, its potential activity against honey bee pathogens have yet to be investigated. Therefore, we investigated for the first time in a controlled laboratory setting the effectiveness of BV administration…
Honey bees, Apis mellifera, have for millennia been managed and exploited by humans and introduced into most suitable regions worldwide. However, given the lack of records for many introduction events, treating A. mellifera populations as native would predictably bias genetic studies regarding origin and evolution. Here, we used the Dongbei bee, a well-documented population, introduced…
Herbicides are the most frequently used pesticides, accounting for more than 60% of all pesticides used in agriculture around the world. Clethodim (CTD) (Vixtol Super® 24% EC), haloxyfop-p-methyl (HFM) (Gallant Super® 10.8% EC), and their mixture (CTD (15%) + HFM (7.5%) (Fine® 22.5% EC) are among the most commonly used post-emergence graminicides in Egypt and worldwide. However,…
A honey bee colony’s ability to grow and develop is dependent on adequate nutrition. Bees collect pollen from flowers as a source of protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals. The crude protein content of corn pollen is considered low, around 15%; however, bees frequently visit the male flowers of the tassels for pollen. In this study,…
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…
The EurBeST Pilot project “Restructuring of the honey bee chain and Varroa resistance breeding & selection programme” (Agri 2017-0346) ran from 2019 to 2021 and explored possibilities for increasing the varroa resistance of commercially available honey bees by selective breeding, and analysed ways to improve beekeepers’ access to resistant material. Analysis of the EU market…
WCVM Research Chair in Pollinator Health The Department of Veterinary Pathology, Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM), University of Saskatchewan, invites applications for a tenure-track faculty position at the Assistant/Associate Professor level in anatomic pathology with a strong research focus on pollinator health. The successful candidate will be a researcher with demonstrated exceptional research achievements…
Inflammation is a defense process triggered when the body faces assaults from pathogens, toxic substances, microbial infections, or when tissue is damaged. Immune and inflammatory disorders are common pathogenic pathways that lead to the progress of various chronic diseases, such as cancer and diabetes. The overproduction of cytokines, such as interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and tumor…
Consumers often believe that “natural food” is harmless, however naturally occurring toxins in food represent a health risk to humans. Honey as a natural, nutritious sweetener, is one of the most commonly consumed foods throughout the world. However, food safety concerns for honey arise when honeybees collect nectar from poisonous plants such as Rhododendron sp., Coriaria arborea, and Tripterygium wilfordii Hook…