Apiology

The study of honeybees...

The effects of age and behavioral development on honey bee (Apis mellifera) flight performance

A critical but seldom-studied component of life history theory is how behavior and age affect whole-organism performance. To address this issue we compared the flight performance of honey bees (whose behavioral development and age can be assessed independently via simple manipulations of colony demographics) between distinct behavioral castes (in-hive nurse bees vs outof-hive foragers) and across lifespan.

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Drone and Worker Brood Microclimates Are Regulated Differentially in Honey Bees, Apis mellifera

Honey bee (Apis mellifera) drones and workers show differences in morphology, physiology, and behavior. Because the functions of drones are more related to colony reproduction, and those of workers relate to both survival and reproduction, we hypothesize that the microclimate for worker brood is more precisely regulated than that of drone brood.

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Honeybee navigation en route to the goal: visual flight control and odometry

Recent research has uncovered a number of different ways in which bees use cues derived from optic flow for navigational purposes. The distance flown to a food source is gauged by integrating the apparent motion of the visual world that is experienced en route. In other words, bees possess a visually driven 'odometer' that is robust to variations in wind load and energy expenditure.

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How Honey Bee Colonies Survive in the Wild: Testing the Importance of Small Nests and Frequent Swarming

The ectoparasitic mite, Varroa destructor, and the viruses that it transmits, kill the colonies of European honey bees (Apis mellifera) kept by beekeepers unless the bees are treated with miticides.

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Quorum sensing during nest-site selection by honeybee swarms

This study addresses a question about the nestsite selection process of honeybee swarms: how do the scout bees know when to initiate the preparation for their swarm’s move to their new home?

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Catch the Buzz

General Beekeeping News...

Beekeeping in Vermont...

Unravelling the Molecular Determinants of Bee Sensitivity to Neonicotinoid Insecticides

The impact of neonicotinoid insecticides on the health of bee pollinators is a topic of intensive research and considerable current debate [1]. As insecticides, certain neonicotinoids, i.e., N-nitroguanidine compounds such as imidacloprid and thiamethoxam, are as intrinsically toxic to bees as to the insect pests they target.

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Details: Published: 27 March 2018 27 March 2018

'Virtually sting-proof' bee suit made after allergy concern

The Sentinel Pro 3D Bee Suit, created by Ian Roberts, is made from material thicker than the average bee sting.

The suit is being used by horticulture students at the National Botanic Garden of Wales in Carmarthenshire.

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Details: Published: 27 March 2018 27 March 2018

Draft Guidance for Industry: Declaration of Added Sugars on Honey, Maple Syrup, and Certain Cranberry Products

The purpose of this draft guidance is to advise food manufacturers of our intent to exercise enforcement discretion related to the use in the Nutrition Facts label of a symbol immediately after the added sugars percent Daily Value information on single-ingredient packages and/or containers of pure honey or pure maple syrup and on certain dried cranberry and cranberry juice products that are sweetened with added sugars and that contain total sugars at levels no greater than comparable products with endogenous (inherent) sugars, but no added sugars.

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Details: Published: 25 March 2018 25 March 2018

New Zealand's highest rate of colony loss

South Canterbury beekeepers have faced a challenging summer with drought and the varroa mite impacting hives.

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) released its Bee Colony Loss Survey report for 2017 on March 16, which sampled 30 per cent of New Zealand beekeepers to determine the rate of hive loss and the main reasons for it.

MPI aquatic and environment health manager Dr. Michael Taylor said a severe drought for the middle of the South Island last year was the leading contributor to the jump in colony loss.

The drought's main impact was causing nectar and pollen sources to deplete, leading to bees dying from starvation, Taylor said.

For the middle of the South Island, encompassing Canterbury and the West Coast, the loss was 11.4 per cent compared to 7.2 per cent in 2016.

Pleasant Point Apiaries beekeeper Paul Bartrum said, however, the varroa mite - a parasite that attaches to bees and sucks fat from them - has been the main killer of his South Canterbury hives because the mites are gaining a resistance to treatments.

More:New Zealand

Details: Published: 24 March 2018 24 March 2018

CATCH THE BUZZ : 16 Grants to Address Declining Pollinator Health.

WASHINGTON, March 13, 2018 -The Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research, a nonprofit established through bipartisan congressional support in the 2014 Farm Bill, today announced 16 grants totaling $7 million for research to address declining pollinator health, an ongoing threat to agricultural productivity in the United States. The FFAR awards are matched by more than 50 companies, universities, organizations and individuals for a total investment of $14.3 million toward research and technology development.

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Details: Published: 24 March 2018 24 March 2018

CATCH THE BUZZ: Why Do Bees Sting?

Researchers have unraveled the neuro-molecular mechanism of defense by honey bees when exposed to the sting alarm pheromone that they release in the face of a threat.

The team of researchers led by Prof. Martin Giurfa from the Universite de Toulouse in Toulouse, France has found that smelling isoamyl acetate, the main component in the alarm pheromone, increases the level of serotonin and dopamine in their brains, which, in turn, increases the stinging behaviour in bees and thus repels a threat. By itself, the alarm pheromone does not behave as a stimulus but increases the likelihood of bees guarding the hive to repel a threat by stinging.

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