scholarly journals Honey Bee (Hymenoptera: Apidea) Pollen Forage in a Highly Cultivated Agroecosystem: Limited Diet Diversity and Its Relationship to Virus Resistance

2020 ◽  
Vol 113 (3) ◽  
pp. 1062-1072 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ge Zhang ◽  
Ashley L St. Clair ◽  
Adam Dolezal ◽  
Amy L Toth ◽  
Matthew O’Neal
Keyword(s):  
Viral Infection ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Diet Diversity ◽  
Immune Health ◽  
Pollen Traps ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Intensified agriculture reduces natural and seminatural habitats and plant diversity, reducing forage available to honey bees (Apis mellifera L. [Hymenoptera: Apidea]). In agricultural landscapes of Iowa, United States, we studied the impact of extrinsic agricultural intensification on the availability of pollen for honey bees by placing colonies next to soybean fields surrounded by either a low or high level of cultivation. The abundance and diversity of pollen returned to a colony were estimated by placing pollen traps on bee colonies during the summer and fall of 2015 and 2016. We observed no difference in abundance and diversity of pollen collected by colonies in either landscape, but abundance varied over time with significantly less collected in September. We explored if the most commonly collected pollen from these landscapes had the capacity to support honey bee immune health by testing if diets consisting of these pollens improved bee resistance to a viral infection. Compared to bees denied pollen, a mixture of pollen from the two most common plant taxa (Trifolium spp. L. [Fabales: Fabaceae] and Chimaechrista fasciculata (Michx.) Greene [Fabales: Fabaceae]) significantly reduced honey bee mortality induced by viral infection. These data suggest that a community of a few common plants was favored by honey bees, and when available, could be valuable for reducing mortality from a viral infection. Our data suggest a late season shortage of pollen may be ameliorated by additions of fall flowering plants, like goldenrod (Solidago spp. L. [Asterales: Asteraceae]) and sunflower (Helianthus, Heliopsis, and Silphium spp. [Asterales: Asteraceae]), as options for enhancing pollen availability and quality for honey bees in agricultural landscapes.

scholarly journals Flowers in Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Pollinator Plantings and the Upper Midwest Agricultural Landscape Supporting Honey Bees

Insects ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 405
Author(s):  
Harper McMinn-Sauder ◽  
Rodney Richardson ◽  
Tyler Eaton ◽  
Mike Smith ◽  
Reed Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Agricultural Landscape ◽  
Conservation Reserve Program ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Primary Sources ◽  
Floral Resources ◽  
Pollinator Abundance ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
Honey Bee Nutrition

A present goal of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is to manage land in agricultural landscapes to increase pollinator abundance and diversity. CP42, or the pollinator seed mix, is planted and managed to support foraging pollinators with blooming flowers present at all points in the foraging season. This high-quality habitat provides an excellent opportunity to study honey bee nutrition and determine whether honey bees located near CRP sites use known resources included in planting seed mixes. This study aims to highlight the primary sources of honey bee forage in the northern Midwest as well as to assess honey bee utilization of the floral resources provided by the pollinator seed mix used for CRP plantings. We received pollen samples collected using pollen traps by beekeepers in Ohio, South Dakota, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan. Metabarcoding methods were used to identify and quantify pollen collected at different points in the season. The results indicate that honey bees frequently used major mass flowering resources such as Glycine, Trifolium, and Symphiotrichum throughout the season. In addition, flowers included in the CRP pollinator seed mix were used modestly. These results have implications for pollinator seed mix design.

scholarly journals Toxicity Evaluation of Selected Plant Water Extracts on a Honey Bee (Apis mellifera L.) Larvae Model

Animals ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 178
Author(s):  
Roksana Kruszakin ◽  
Paweł Migdal
Keyword(s):  
Apis Mellifera ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Larval Rearing ◽  
Distilled Water ◽  
Chelidonium Majus ◽  
Freeze Dried ◽  
Study Laboratory ◽  
The Impact

So far, larval rearing in vitro has been an important method in the assessment of bee toxicology, particularly in pesticide risk assessment. However, natural products are increasingly used to control honey bee pathogens or to enhance bee immunity, but their effects on honey bee larvae are mostly unknown. In this study, laboratory studies were conducted to determine the effects of including selected aqueous plant infusions in the diet of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) larvae in vitro. The toxicity of infusions from three different plant species considered to be medicinal plants was evaluated: tansy (Tanacetum vulgare L.), greater celandine (Chelidonium majus L.), and coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.). The impact of each on the survival of the larvae of honey bees was also evaluated. One-day-old larvae were fed a basal diet consisting of distilled water, sugars (glucose and fructose), yeast extract, and freeze-dried royal jelly or test diets in which distilled water was replaced by plant infusions. The proportion of the diet components was adjusted to the age of the larvae. The larvae were fed twice a day. The experiment lasted seven days. Significant statistical differences in survival rates were found between groups of larvae (exposed or not to the infusions of tansy, greater celandine, and coriander). A significant decrease (p < 0.05) in the survival rate was observed in the group with the addition of a coriander herb infusion compared to the control. These results indicate that plant extracts intended to be used in beekeeping should be tested on all development stages of honey bees.

scholarly journals THE LIFESPAN AND OXIDATIVE STRESS BETWEEN FERAL AND MANAGED HONEY BEE COLONIES

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kilea Ward ◽  
Hongmei Li-Byarlay
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Stress Resistance ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Oxidative Stress Resistance ◽  
Honey Bee Health ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Bee Colonies ◽  
And Oxidative Stress

Molecular damage caused by oxidative stress may lead to organismal aging and resulted in acute mortality in organisms. Oxidative stress resistance and longevity are closely linked. Honey bees are the most important managed pollinator in agriculture but the long-term survival of honey bees is seriously threatened. Feral honey bee colonies displayed persistence to Varroa mites. However, it is unknown whether feral honey bees are stress-resistant or survive longer than managed bee populations. More work is needed to determine the impact of oxidative stress on honey bee health and survival. We used the paired colony design to determine the lifespan and levels of oxidative stress on worker bees from either a feral or a managed colony. Each pair of colonies shared similar foraging resources. Results exhibit longer survival time and lifespans of foragers in feral colonies than the managed colonies. The levels of oxidative stress from the lipid damage of feral colonies are higher than the managed colonies, indicating a tolerant mechanism not a repair mechanism to survive. Our study provided new insights into colony difference of physiology and oxidative stress resistance between feral honey bees and commercial stocks.

scholarly journals Insect visitors to avocado flowers in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand

2017 ◽  
Vol 70 ◽  
pp. 38-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.F.J. Read ◽  
B.G. Howlett ◽  
L.K. Jesson ◽  
D.E. Pattemore
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Insect Species ◽  
Insect Pollination ◽  
Flower Visitor ◽  
Production Area ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
Stocking Rates ◽  
Insect Visitors

Insect pollination is key to ensuring adequate fruit yields within avocado orchards. Various bee and non-bee insect species have been considered as potential pollinators of avocado worldwide, but in New Zealand there has been little research into which insect species visit avocado flowers. In the Bay of Plenty, an important avocado production area, flower visitor abundance and diversity data were obtained by conducting observational surveys in four orchards in November 2015. Honey bees were the dominant flower visitors in all orchards surveyed, representing 92.9% of all insects recorded, but there was high variation in numbers among sites. Other common insects observed included the beetle, Zorion guttigerum (3.4%), and bumblebees Bombus spp. (1.6%). A better understanding of the interaction between honey bee stocking rates and flower visitor abundances within orchards could assist in improving pollination recommendations.

scholarly journals Honey Bee Diversity is Swayed by Migratory Beekeeping and Trade Despite Conservation Practices: Genetic Evidences for the Impact of Anthropogenic Factors on Population Structure

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mert Kükrer ◽  
Meral Kence ◽  
Aykut Kence
Keyword(s):  
Population Structure ◽  
Gene Flow ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Anthropogenic Impacts ◽  
Anthropogenic Factors ◽  
Conservation Implications ◽  
The Status ◽  
Bee Diversity ◽  
The Impact

Intense admixture of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) populations is mostly attributed to migratory beekeeping practices and replacement of queens and colonies with non-native races or hybrids of different subspecies. These two practices are also heavily carried out in Anatolia and Thrace where 5 subspecies reside naturally.Here, we carried out an analysis of population structure of honey bees sampled from six different regions (n = 250) in order to test the genetic impacts of migratory beekeeping, queen and colony trade and conservation efficacy of isolated regions. A total of 30 microsatellite markers were used in four multiplex reactions.Direct genetic impact of migratory beekeeping was demonstrated first time based on a comparison of assignment of individuals to their geographically native populations where migratory colonies showed less fidelity. We found genetic evidence for them acting as a hybrid zone mobile in space and time, becoming vectors of otherwise local gene combinations.The effects of honey bee trade were revealed by the presence of very high introgression levels from the highly commercial Caucasian bees naturally limited to a narrow range. We also measured the direction and magnitude of this gene flow connected with bee trade.Comparison between regions that are either open to migratory beekeeping or not let us evaluate the status of isolated regions as centers of limited gene flow and showed the importance of establishing such regions.Despite signs of gene flow, our findings confirm high levels of geographically structured genetic diversity of four subspecies of honey bees in Turkey and emphasize the need to develop policies to maintain this diversity.Our overall results might potentially bear a wider interest to the community since they constitute an important attempt to quantify the effects of anthropogenic impacts on established patterns of honey bee diversity. Our measurable and justified findings on migratory beekeeping, queen and colony replacements as well as conservation implications will hopefully be of use for the decision makers and other stakeholders.

OLFACTORY REPELLENCY OF HERBICIDES TO FORAGING HONEY BEES (HYMENOPTERA: APIDAE)

1979 ◽  
Vol 111 (10) ◽  
pp. 1131-1135 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.H. Elliott ◽  
D. Cmiralova ◽  
W.G. Wellington
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Foraging Behaviour ◽  
Honey Production ◽  
Brood Development ◽  
Bee Foraging ◽  
Honey Bee Foraging ◽  
The Impact

AbstractForaging honey bees were offered various sucrose–herbicide solutions. Despite the visual attractiveness of the feeding dishes to foragers, six of seven herbicides significantly reduced the incidence of feeding and were judged to be olfactory and gustatory repellents. The most repellent herbicide was 2,4,5-T, which totally inhibited feeding at concentrations as tow as 1000 ppm. The next most repellent was 2,4-DB, followed by linuron, picloram, 2,4-D, and monuron. Paraquat was the only herbicide that did not exhibit marked repellency at concentrations up to 4000 ppm.The implications of these findings are discussed in terms of the impact of herbicide applications on honey bee foraging behaviour, brood development, pollination, and honey production.

scholarly journals Imidacloprid Decreases Honey Bee Survival Rates but Does Not Affect the Gut Microbiome

2018 ◽  
Vol 84 (13) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kasie Raymann ◽  
Erick V. S. Motta ◽  
Catherine Girard ◽  
Ian M. Riddington ◽  
Jordan A. Dinser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Gut Microbiome ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Microbiome Composition ◽  
Susceptibility To Infection ◽  
Bee Colony ◽  
Colony Loss ◽  
Honey Bee Colony ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACT Accumulating evidence suggests that pesticides have played a role in the increased rate of honey bee colony loss. One of the most commonly used pesticides in the United States is the neonicotinoid imidacloprid. Although the primary mode of action of imidacloprid is on the insect nervous system, it has also been shown to cause changes in insects' digestive physiology and alter the microbiota of Drosophila melanogaster larvae. The honey bee gut microbiome plays a major role in bee health. Although many studies have shown that imidacloprid affects honey bee behavior, its impact on the microbiome has not been fully elucidated. Here, we investigated the impact of imidacloprid on the gut microbiome composition, survivorship, and susceptibility to pathogens of honey bees. Consistent with other studies, we show that imidacloprid exposure results in an elevated mortality of honey bees in the hive and increases the susceptibility to infection by pathogens. However, we did not find evidence that imidacloprid affects the gut bacterial community of honey bees. Our in vitro experiments demonstrated that honey bee gut bacteria can grow in the presence of imidacloprid, and we found some evidence that imidacloprid can be metabolized in the bee gut environment. However, none of the individual bee gut bacterial species tested could metabolize imidacloprid, suggesting that the observed metabolism of imidacloprid within in vitro bee gut cultures is not caused by the gut bacteria. Overall, our results indicate that imidacloprid causes increased mortality in honey bees, but this mortality does not appear to be linked to the microbiome. IMPORTANCE Growing evidence suggests that the extensive use of pesticides has played a large role in the increased rate of honey bee colony loss. Despite extensive research on the effects of imidacloprid on honey bees, it is still unknown whether it impacts the community structure of the gut microbiome. Here, we investigated the impact of imidacloprid on the gut microbiome composition, survivorship, and susceptibility to pathogens of honey bees. We found that the exposure to imidacloprid resulted in an elevated mortality of honey bees and increased the susceptibility to infection by opportunistic pathogens. However, we did not find evidence that imidacloprid affects the gut microbiome of honey bees. We found some evidence that imidacloprid can be metabolized in the bee gut environment in vitro , but because it is quickly eliminated from the bee, it is unlikely that this metabolism occurs in nature. Thus, imidacloprid causes increased mortality in honey bees, but this does not appear to be linked to the microbiome.

scholarly journals Case study of microarthropod communities to assess soil quality in different managed vineyards

SOIL ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 527-536 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Gagnarli ◽  
D. Goggioli ◽  
F. Tarchi ◽  
S. Guidi ◽  
R. Nannelli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Quality ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Chemical Properties ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Soil Arthropods ◽  
Taxa Richness ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
High Level ◽  
Physical And Chemical ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Land use influences the abundance and diversity of soil arthropods. The evaluation of the impact of different management strategies on soil quality is increasingly sought, and the determination of community structures of edaphic fauna can represent an efficient tool. In the area of Langhe (Piedmont, Italy), eight vineyards characterized for physical and chemical properties (soil texture, soil pH, total organic carbon, total nitrogen, calcium carbonate) were selected. We evaluated the effect of two types of crop management, organic and integrated pest management (IPM), on abundance and biodiversity of microarthropods living at the soil surface. Soil sampling was carried out in winter 2011 and spring 2012. All specimens were counted and determined up to the order level. The biodiversity analysis was performed using ecological indexes (taxa richness, dominance, Shannon–Wiener, Buzas and Gibson's evenness, Margalef, equitability, Berger–Parker), and the biological soil quality was assessed with the BSQ-ar index. The mesofauna abundance was affected by both the type of management and sampling time. On the whole, a higher abundance was in organic vineyards (N = 1981) than in IPM ones (N = 1062). The analysis performed by ecological indexes showed quite a high level of biodiversity in this environment, particularly in May 2012. Furthermore, the BSQ-ar values registered were similar to those obtained in preserved soils.

scholarly journals Transcriptome-level assessment of the impact of deformed wing virus on honey bee larvae

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zih-Ting Chang ◽  
Yu-Feng Huang ◽  
Yue-Wen Chen ◽  
Ming-Ren Yen ◽  
Po-Ya Hsu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Larval Stage ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Pupal Stage ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Expression Levels ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Honey Bee Larvae ◽  
Gene Expression Levels

AbstractDeformed wing virus (DWV) prevalence is high in honey bee (Apis mellifera) populations. The virus infects honey bees through vertical and horizontal transmission, leading to behavioural changes, wing deformity, and early mortality. To better understand the impacts of viral infection in the larval stage of honey bees, artificially reared honey bee larvae were infected with DWV (1.55 × 1010 copies/per larva). No significant mortality occurred in infected honey bee larvae, while the survival rates decreased significantly at the pupal stage. Examination of DWV replication revealed that viral replication began at 2 days post inoculation (d.p.i.), increased dramatically to 4 d.p.i., and then continuously increased in the pupal stage. To better understand the impact of DWV on the larval stage, DWV-infected and control groups were subjected to transcriptomic analysis at 4 d.p.i. Two hundred fifty-five differentially expressed genes (DEGs) (fold change ≥ 2 or ≤ -2) were identified. Of these DEGs, 168 genes were downregulated, and 87 genes were upregulated. Gene Ontology (GO) analysis showed that 141 DEGs (55.3%) were categorized into molecular functions, cellular components and biological processes. One hundred eleven genes (38 upregulated and 73 downregulated) were annotated by KO (KEGG Orthology) pathway mapping and involved metabolic pathways, biosynthesis of secondary metabolites and glycine, serine and threonine metabolism pathways. Validation of DEGs was performed, and the related gene expression levels showed a similar tendency to the DEG predictions at 4 d.p.i.; cell wall integrity and stress response component 1 (wsc1), cuticular protein and myo-inositol 2-dehydrogenase (iolG) were significantly upregulated, and small conductance calcium-activated potassium channel protein (SK) was significantly downregulated at 4 d.p.i. Related gene expression levels at different d.p.i. revealed that these DEGs were significantly regulated from the larval stage to the pupal stage, indicating the potential impacts of gene expression levels from the larval to the pupal stages. Taken together, DWV infection in the honey bee larval stage potentially influences the gene expression levels from larvae to pupae and reduces the survival rate of the pupal stage. This information emphasizes the consequences of DWV prevalence in honey bee larvae for apiculture.

scholarly journals Honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies benefit from grassland/ pasture while bumble bee (Bombus impatiens) colonies in the same landscapes benefit from non-corn/soybean cropland

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (9) ◽  
pp. e0257701
Author(s):  
Gabriela M. Quinlan ◽  
Meghan O. Milbrath ◽  
Clint R. V. Otto ◽  
Rufus Isaacs
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Land Use ◽  
Apis Mellifera ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
The United States ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Bombus Impatiens ◽  
Bumble Bee ◽  
Social Bees

Agriculturally important commercially managed pollinators including honey bees (Apis mellifera L., 1758) and bumble bees (Bombus impatiens Cresson, 1863) rely on the surrounding landscape to fulfill their dietary needs. A previous study in Europe demonstrated that managed honey bee foragers and unmanaged native bumble bee foragers are associated with different land uses. However, it is unclear how response to land use compares between managed honey bees and a managed native bumble bee species in the United States, where honey bees are an imported species. Furthermore, to our knowledge, no such direct comparisons of bee responses to land use have been made at the colony level. To better understand how two different social bees respond to variation in land use, we monitored the weights of A. mellifera and B. impatiens colonies placed in 12 apiaries across a range of land use in Michigan, United States in 2017. Bombus impatiens colonies gained more weight and produced more drones when surrounded by diverse agricultural land (i.e., non-corn/soybean cropland such as tree fruits and grapes), while honey bee colonies gained more weight when surrounded by more grassland/pasture land. These findings add to our understanding of how different bee species respond to agricultural landscapes, highlighting the need for further species-specific land use studies to inform tailored land management.

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