scholarly journals Home sick: impacts of migratory beekeeping on honey bee (Apis mellifera) pests, pathogens, and colony size

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e5812 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samantha A. Alger ◽  
P. Alexander Burnham ◽  
Zachary S. Lamas ◽  
Alison K. Brody ◽  
Leif L. Richardson
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Pesticide Exposure ◽  
Floral Resources ◽  
Black Queen Cell Virus ◽  
Manipulative Experiment ◽  
Viral Pathogen ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Single Location ◽  
Queen Cell ◽  
Bee Colonies

Honey bees are important pollinators of agricultural crops and the dramatic losses of honey bee colonies have risen to a level of international concern. Potential contributors to such losses include pesticide exposure, lack of floral resources and parasites and pathogens. The damaging effects of all of these may be exacerbated by apicultural practices. To meet the pollination demand of US crops, bees are transported to areas of high pollination demand throughout the year. Compared to stationary colonies, risk of parasitism and infectious disease may be greater for migratory bees than those that remain in a single location, although this has not been experimentally established. Here, we conducted a manipulative experiment to test whether viral pathogen and parasite loads increase as a result of colonies being transported for pollination of a major US crop, California almonds. We also tested if they subsequently transmit those diseases to stationary colonies upon return to their home apiaries. Colonies started with equivalent numbers of bees, however migratory colonies returned with fewer bees compared to stationary colonies and this difference remained one month later. Migratory colonies returned with higher black queen cell virus loads than stationary colonies, but loads were similar between groups one month later. Colonies exposed to migratory bees experienced a greater increase of deformed wing virus prevalence and load compared to the isolated group. The three groups had similar infestations of Varroa mites upon return of the migratory colonies. However, one month later, mite loads in migratory colonies were significantly lower compared to the other groups, possibly because of lower number of host bees. Our study demonstrates that migratory pollination practices has varying health effects for honey bee colonies. Further research is necessary to clarify how migratory pollination practices influence the disease dynamics of honey bee diseases we describe here.

scholarly journals The Pathogen Profile of a Honey Bee Queen Does Not Reflect That of Her Workers

Insects ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 382 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica L. Kevill ◽  
Katie Lee ◽  
Michael Goblirsch ◽  
Erin McDermott ◽  
David R. Tarpy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Horizontal Transmission ◽  
Pathogen Transmission ◽  
Black Queen Cell Virus ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus ◽  
Queen Cell ◽  
Honey Bee Queen ◽  
Acute Bee Paralysis Virus ◽  
Paralysis Virus

Throughout a honey bee queen’s lifetime, she is tended to by her worker daughters, who feed and groom her. Such interactions provide possible horizontal transmission routes for pathogens from the workers to the queen, and as such a queen’s pathogen profile may be representative of the workers within a colony. To explore this further, we investigated known honey bee pathogen co-occurrence, as well as pathogen transmission from workers to queens. Queens from 42 colonies were removed from their source hives and exchanged into a second, unrelated foster colony. Worker samples were taken from the source colony on the day of queen exchange and the queens were collected 24 days after introduction. All samples were screened for Nosema spp., Trypanosome spp., acute bee paralysis virus (ABPV), black queen cell virus (BQCV), chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV), Israeli acute paralysis virus (IAPV), Lake Sinai virus (LSV), and deformed wing virus master variants (DWV-A, B, and C) using RT-qPCR. The data show that LSV, Nosema, and DWV-B were the most abundant pathogens in colonies. All workers (n = 42) were LSV-positive, 88% were Nosema-positive, whilst pathogen loads were low (<1 × 106 genome equivalents per pooled worker sample). All queens (n = 39) were negative for both LSV and Nosema. We found no evidence of DWV transmission occurring from worker to queen when comparing queens to foster colonies, despite DWV being present in both queens and workers. Honey bee pathogen presence and diversity in queens cannot be revealed from screening workers, nor were pathogens successfully transmitted to the queen.

scholarly journals Molecular detection and phylogenetic assessment of six honeybee viruses in Apis mellifera L. colonies in Bulgaria

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e5077 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rositsa Shumkova ◽  
Boyko Neov ◽  
Daniela Sirakova ◽  
Ani Georgieva ◽  
Dimitar Gadjev ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Severe Infection ◽  
Eastern Region ◽  
Sequencing Data ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Queen Cell ◽  
Kashmir Bee Virus ◽  
Bee Colonies ◽  
Paralysis Virus ◽  
Bee Viruses

Honey bee colonies suffer from various pathogens, including honey bee viruses. About 24 viruses have been reported so far. However, six of them are considered to cause severe infection which inflicts heavy losses on beekeeping. The aim of this study was to investigate incidence of six honey bee viruses: deformed wing virus (DWV), acute bee paralysis virus (ABPV), chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV), sacbrood virus (SBV), kashmir bee virus (KBV), and black queen cell virus (BQCV) by a reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). A total of 250 adult honey bee samples were obtained from 50 colonies from eight apiaries situated in three different parts of the country (South, North and West Bulgaria). The results showed the highest prevalence of DWV followed by SBV and ABPV, and one case of BQCV. A comparison with homology sequences available in GenBank was performed by phylogenetic analysis, and phylogenetic relationships were discussed in the context of newly described genotypes in the uninvestigated South Eastern region of Europe. In conclusion, the present study has been the first to provide sequencing data and phylogenetics analyses of some honey bee viruses in Bulgaria.

scholarly journals Tolerance of Honey Bees to Varroa Mite in the Absence of Deformed Wing Virus

Viruses ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 575 ◽  
Author(s):  
John M. K. Roberts ◽  
Nelson Simbiken ◽  
Chris Dale ◽  
Joel Armstrong ◽  
Denis L. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
High Throughput Sequencing ◽  
Solomon Islands ◽  
Host Shift ◽  
Colony Losses ◽  
Viral Pathogen ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Bee Health ◽  
Queen Cell

The global spread of the parasitic mite Varroa destructor has emphasized the significance of viruses as pathogens of honey bee (Apis mellifera) populations. In particular, the association of deformed wing virus (DWV) with V. destructor and its devastating effect on honey bee colonies has led to that virus now becoming one of the most well-studied insect viruses. However, there has been no opportunity to examine the effects of Varroa mites without the influence of DWV. In Papua New Guinea (PNG), the sister species, V. jacobsoni, has emerged through a host-shift to reproduce on the local A. mellifera population. After initial colony losses, beekeepers have maintained colonies without chemicals for more than a decade, suggesting that this bee population has an unknown mite tolerance mechanism. Using high throughput sequencing (HTS) and target PCR detection, we investigated whether the viral landscape of the PNG honey bee population is the underlying factor responsible for mite tolerance. We found A. mellifera and A. cerana from PNG and nearby Solomon Islands were predominantly infected by sacbrood virus (SBV), black queen cell virus (BQCV) and Lake Sinai viruses (LSV), with no evidence for any DWV strains. V. jacobsoni was infected by several viral homologs to recently discovered V. destructor viruses, but Varroa jacobsoni rhabdovirus-1 (ARV-1 homolog) was the only virus detected in both mites and honey bees. We conclude from these findings that A. mellifera in PNG may tolerate V. jacobsoni because the damage from parasitism is significantly reduced without DWV. This study also provides further evidence that DWV does not exist as a covert infection in all honey bee populations, and remaining free of this serious viral pathogen can have important implications for bee health outcomes in the face of Varroa.

scholarly journals Virus Status, Varroa Levels, and Survival of 20 Managed Honey Bee Colonies Monitored in Luxembourg Between the Summer of 2011 and the Spring of 2013

2015 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antoine Clermont ◽  
Matias Pasquali ◽  
Michael Eickermann ◽  
François Kraus ◽  
Lucien Hoffmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Varroa Destructor ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Sacbrood Virus ◽  
Queen Cell ◽  
Varroa Mites ◽  
Kashmir Bee Virus ◽  
Bee Colonies ◽  
Paralysis Virus

Abstract Twenty managed honey bee colonies, split between 5 apiaries with 4 hives each, were monitored between the summer of 2011 and spring of 2013. Living bees were sampled in July 2011, July 2012, and August 2012. Twenty-five, medium-aged bees, free of varroa mites, were pooled per colony and date, to form one sample. Unlike in France and Belgium, Chronic Bee Paralysis Virus (CBPV) has not been found in Luxembourg. Slow Bee Paralysis Virus (SBPV) and Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus (IAPV) levels were below detection limits. Traces of Kashmir Bee Virus (KBV) were amplified. Black Queen Cell Virus (BQCV), Varroa destructor Virus-1 (VDV-1), and SacBrood Virus (SBV) were detected in all samples and are reported from Luxembourg for the first time. Varroa destructor Macula- Like Virus (VdMLV), Deformed Wing Virus (DWV), and Acute Bee Paralysis Virus (ABPV) were detected at all locations, and in most but not all samples. There was a significant increase in VDV-1 and DWV levels within the observation period. A principal component analysis was unable to separate the bees of colonies that survived the following winter from bees that died, based on their virus contents in summer. The number of dead varroa mites found below colonies was elevated in colonies that died in the following winter. Significant positive relationships were found between the log-transformed virus levels of the bees and the log-transformed number of mites found below the colonies per week, for VDV-1 and DWV. Sacbrood virus levels were independent of varroa levels, suggesting a neutral or competitive relationship between this virus and varroa.

scholarly journals The first molecular detection and phylogenetic assessment of six honeybee viruses in Apis mellifera L. colonies in Bulgaria

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rositsa Shumkova ◽  
Boyko Neov ◽  
Daniela Sirakova ◽  
Ani Georgieva ◽  
Denitsa Teofanova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Severe Infection ◽  
Eastern Region ◽  
Sequencing Data ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Queen Cell ◽  
Kashmir Bee Virus ◽  
Bee Colonies ◽  
Paralysis Virus ◽  
Bee Viruses

Honey bee colonies suffer from various pathogens, including honey bee viruses. About 24 viruses have been reported so far. However, six of them are considered to cause severe infection which inflicts heavy losses on beekeeping. The aim of this study is to detect six honey bee viruses: deformed wing virus (DWV), acute bee paralysis virus (ABPV), chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV), sacbrood virus (SBV), kashmir bee virus (KBV), and black queen cell virus (BQCV) by a Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). A total of 50 adult honey bee samples were obtained from apiaries situated in three different parts of the country (South, North and West Bulgaria).The results showed the highest prevalence of DWV (10/20 %), followed by SBV (6/12 %) and ABPV (2/4%), and one case of BQCV. A comparison with homology sequences available in GenBank was performed by phylogenetic analysis, and phylogenetic relationships were discussed in the context of newly described genotypes in the uninvestigated South Eastern region of Europe.In conclusion, the present study has been the first to provide sequencing data and phylogenetics analyses of some honey bee viruses in Bulgaria.

Occurrence, detection, and quantification of economically important viruses in healthy and unhealthy honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colonies in Canada

2015 ◽  
Vol 148 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suresh D. Desai ◽  
Santosh Kumar ◽  
Robert W. Currie
Keyword(s):  
Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Multiple Infections ◽  
Black Queen Cell Virus ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Sacbrood Virus ◽  
Queen Cell ◽  
Polymerase Chain ◽  
Paralysis Virus

AbstractThe occurrence, quantification, and distribution patterns of deformed wing virus (DWV) and sacbrood virus (SBV), (family Iflaviridae); black queen cell virus (BQCV), Israeli acute paralysis virus (IAPV), Kashmir bee virus (KBV), and acute bee paralysis virus (ABPV) (family Dicistroviridae), and chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV) (unclassified), were characterised in 80 “healthy” honey bee (Apis mellifera Linnaeus; Hymenoptera: Apidae) colonies and 23 “unhealthy” colonies by employing reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for virus identification and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) for quantification. All seven viruses were common but the most prevalent viruses were DWV, followed by BQCV and IAPV. For most viruses, prevalence in surviving but unhealthy colonies in spring did not differ from that of healthy baseline colony levels in fall suggesting spring prevalence level would not be a useful metric for diagnosis of factors contributing to colony loss. Sacbrood virus was the only virus that was more prevalent in unhealthy colonies from Manitoba, Canada than in healthy from colonies across Canada but did not differ from healthy colonies within Manitoba. Multiple infections were ubiquitous with a few colonies having simultaneous infection with as many as five viruses. Among the three viruses quantified by qPCR, DWV had the highest relative concentrations in pooled samples of worker bees. Deformed wing virus was the only virus within healthy colonies that differed in fall concentration among provinces and was at high levels in unhealthy colonies. Black queen cell virus was positively correlated with IAPV across all samples. Our study provides the first major baseline study of viruses in Canadian honey bees.

scholarly journals The first molecular detection and phylogenetic assessment of six honeybee viruses in Apis mellifera L. colonies in Bulgaria

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rositsa Shumkova ◽  
Boyko Neov ◽  
Daniela Sirakova ◽  
Ani Georgieva ◽  
Denitsa Teofanova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Severe Infection ◽  
Eastern Region ◽  
Sequencing Data ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Queen Cell ◽  
Kashmir Bee Virus ◽  
Bee Colonies ◽  
Paralysis Virus ◽  
Bee Viruses

Honey bee colonies suffer from various pathogens, including honey bee viruses. About 24 viruses have been reported so far. However, six of them are considered to cause severe infection which inflicts heavy losses on beekeeping. The aim of this study is to detect six honey bee viruses: deformed wing virus (DWV), acute bee paralysis virus (ABPV), chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV), sacbrood virus (SBV), kashmir bee virus (KBV), and black queen cell virus (BQCV) by a Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). A total of 50 adult honey bee samples were obtained from apiaries situated in three different parts of the country (South, North and West Bulgaria).The results showed the highest prevalence of DWV (10/20 %), followed by SBV (6/12 %) and ABPV (2/4%), and one case of BQCV. A comparison with homology sequences available in GenBank was performed by phylogenetic analysis, and phylogenetic relationships were discussed in the context of newly described genotypes in the uninvestigated South Eastern region of Europe.In conclusion, the present study has been the first to provide sequencing data and phylogenetics analyses of some honey bee viruses in Bulgaria.

scholarly journals Detection of Lotmaria passim, Crithidia mellificae and Replicative Forms of Deformed Wing Virus and Kashmir Bee Virus in the Small Hive Beetle (Aethina tumida)

Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 372
Author(s):  
Antonio Nanetti ◽  
James D. Ellis ◽  
Ilaria Cardaio ◽  
Giovanni Cilia
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Aethina Tumida ◽  
Small Hive Beetle ◽  
Deformed Wing Virus ◽  
Queen Cell ◽  
Kashmir Bee Virus ◽  
Acute Bee Paralysis Virus ◽  
Bee Virus ◽  
Paralysis Virus ◽  
Lotmaria Passim

Knowledge regarding the honey bee pathogens borne by invasive bee pests remains scarce. This investigation aimed to assess the presence in Aethina tumida (small hive beetle, SHB) adults of honey bee pathogens belonging to the following groups: (i) bacteria (Paenibacillus larvae and Melissococcus plutonius), (ii) trypanosomatids (Lotmaria passim and Crithidia mellificae), and (iii) viruses (black queen cell virus, Kashmir bee virus, deformed wing virus, slow paralysis virus, sacbrood virus, Israeli acute paralysis virus, acute bee paralysis virus, chronic bee paralysis virus). Specimens were collected from free-flying colonies in Gainesville (Florida, U.S.A.) in summer 2017. The results of the molecular analysis show the presence of L. passim, C. mellificae, and replicative forms of deformed wing virus (DWV) and Kashmir bee virus (KBV). Replicative forms of KBV have not previously been reported. These results support the hypothesis of pathogen spillover between managed honey bees and the SHB, and these dynamics require further investigation.

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