scholarly journals Effects of exposure to sublethal concentrations of methoxyfenozide on honey bee colony activity and thermoregulation

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
William G. Meikle ◽  
Vanessa Corby-Harris ◽  
Mark J. Carroll ◽  
Milagra Weiss ◽  
Lucy A. Snyder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Daily Activity ◽  
Insect Growth Regulator ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Treatment Groups ◽  
Bee Colony ◽  
Bee Bread ◽  
Bee Health ◽  
Honey Bee Colony ◽  
Reduced Rate

AbstractMethoxyfenozide is an insect growth regulator (IGR) commonly used in agricultural to simultaneously control pests and preserve beneficial insect populations; however, its impact on honey bees in not fully understood. We conducted field and laboratory experiments to investigate bee health in response to field-relevant doses of this pesticide. Significant effects were observed in honey bee colony flight activity and thermoregulation after being treated with methoxyfenozide. Data collected indicated that hives fed 500 ppb methoxyfenozide treated pollen patty had: 1) a significantly reduced rate of daily hive weight loss due to forager departure at the start of the colony’s daily activity; 2) the end of the colony’s daily activity delayed by 17-21 minutes compared to Control; and 3) higher temperature variability during the winter. Colonies in the 125 ppb treatment group had fewer differences with the Control group, but did show a delay in the foraging end time by 30-46 minutes compared to the Control. Bee colony metrics of adult bee mass and brood surface area, and individual bee measurements of head weight, newly-emerged bee weight, and hypopharyngeal gland size were not significantly affected by the methoxyfenozide exposure levels of our experiments. An experiment conducted using the same treatment groups in the spring resulted in fewer differences among groups than did the experiments conducted in the fall. Analyses of methoxyfenozide concentrations in the treatment patty, wax, and bee bread showed that: 1) observed methoxyfenozide concentrations were about 18-60% lower than the calculated concentrations; 2) no residues were observed in wax in any treatment; and 3) methoxyfenozide was detected in stored bee bread in the 500 ppb treatment, at concentrations about 1-2.5% of the observed concentration for that treatment. These results suggest that there may be significant effects on honey bee colony behavior (and possibly health) in the field that are difficult to detect through traditional hive inspections and individual metrics.

scholarly journals Comparative assessment of various supplementary diets on commercial honey bee (Apis mellifera) health and colony performance

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (10) ◽  
pp. e0258430
Author(s):  
Saboor Ahmad ◽  
Khalid Ali Khan ◽  
Shahmshad Ahmed Khan ◽  
Hamed A. Ghramh ◽  
Aziz Gul
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Colony Development ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Pollen Load ◽  
Treatment Groups ◽  
Bee Colony ◽  
Sugar Syrup ◽  
Colony Performance ◽  
Protein Feeding ◽  
Honey Yield

A healthy honey bee stock is critical to the beekeeping industry and the sustainability of the ecosystem. The quality of the supplemental diet influences the development and strength of the colony, especially during the pollen dearth period in the surrounding environment. However, the extent to which pollen substitute protein feeding affects honey bee colony parameters is not fully known. We conducted this study to test the influence of various supplemental diets on foraging effort, pollen load, capped brood area, population density, and honey yield. The treatment groups were supplied with patties of pollen substitute diets, whereas sugar syrup was given to the control group. Our results indicated that honey bees consumed a significantly higher amount of Diet 1 (45 g soybean flour + 15 g Brewer’s yeast + 75 g powdered sugar + 7.5 g skimmed milk + 7.5 g date palm pollen + 200 mL sugar syrup supplement with Vitamin C) followed by others supplemented diets. Further, pollen load, worker-sealed brood area, population strength, and honey yield differed significantly when Diet 1 was consumed instead of other supplemental diets. The proportion of biological parameters was less in the control group as compared to other treatments. This study highlights the potential of supplemental diets to improve the bee’s health and colony development when the pollens availability and diversity are insufficient.

scholarly journals Sublethal concentrations of clothianidin affect honey bee colony growth and hive CO2 concentration

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
William G. Meikle ◽  
John J. Adamczyk ◽  
Milagra Weiss ◽  
Janie Ross ◽  
Chris Werle ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Pesticide Exposure ◽  
Co2 Concentration ◽  
Colony Growth ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Brood Production ◽  
Weight Losses ◽  
Bee Colony ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Bee Colonies

AbstractThe effects of agricultural pesticide exposure upon honey bee colonies is of increasing interest to beekeepers and researchers, and the impact of neonicotinoid pesticides in particular has come under intense scrutiny. To explore potential colony-level effects of a neonicotinoid pesticide at field-relevant concentrations, honey bee colonies were fed 5- and 20-ppb concentrations of clothianidin in sugar syrup while control colonies were fed unadulterated syrup. Two experiments were conducted in successive years at the same site in southern Arizona, and one in the high rainfall environment of Mississippi. Across all three experiments, adult bee masses were about 21% lower among colonies fed 20-ppb clothianidin than the untreated control group, but no effects of treatment on brood production were observed. Average daily hive weight losses per day in the 5-ppb clothianidin colonies were about 39% lower post-treatment than in the 20-ppb clothianidin colonies, indicating lower consumption and/or better foraging, but the dry weights of newly-emerged adult bees were on average 6–7% lower in the 5-ppb group compared to the other groups, suggesting a nutritional problem in the 5-ppb group. Internal hive CO2 concentration was higher on average in colonies fed 20-ppb clothianidin, which could have resulted from greater CO2 production and/or reduced ventilating activity. Hive temperature average and daily variability were not affected by clothianidin exposure but did differ significantly among trials. Clothianidin was found to be, like imidacloprid, highly stable in honey in the hive environment over several months.

scholarly journals Ovipositor sources for queen-rearing of honey bee (Apis mellifera) revealed inheritable maternal effect on reared queen

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Longtao Yu ◽  
Xinxin Shi ◽  
Xujiang He ◽  
Weiyu Yan ◽  
Xiaobo Wu
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Maternal Effects ◽  
Growth And Development ◽  
Reproductive Potential ◽  
Colony Growth ◽  
Bee Colony ◽  
Physiological Indexes ◽  
Foraging Ability ◽  
Honey Bee Colony ◽  
Weight Number

Abstract Queen is arguably the most important member of a honey bee colony, and queen quality is crucial for honey bee colony growth and development. In this study, queens were reared with eggs laid in queen cells (QE), eggs laid in worker cells (WE) and 2-day old larvae in worker cells (L). Those physiological indexes (the weight, thorax size and number of ovarioles) of newly reared queens in each group were measured. Moreover, the reproductive potential of the newly reared queens and foraging ability of worker bees laid by the newly reared queens in each group were further explored. In addition, we also examined whether maternal effects would be transmitted to the offspring queens in honey bee. We found that the weight, number of ovarioles and thorax weight of newly emerged queens in QE were significantly higher than those in WE and L, suggesting the reproductive potential was stronger in QE group than WE and L group. Furthermore, offspring worker bees and queens of QE queens had higher weight at emergence than those from the other two groups. This study proved profound honey bee maternal effects on queen quality, which can be transmitted to their offspring. Our results of the present study were important for improving queen quality and promoting the development of beekeeping and agriculture.

scholarly journals Tracking All Members of a Honey Bee Colony Over Their Lifetime Using Learned Models of Correspondence

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Franziska Boenisch ◽  
Benjamin Rosemann ◽  
Benjamin Wild ◽  
David Dormagen ◽  
Fernando Wario ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Bee Colony ◽  
Honey Bee Colony
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