Bee

Wild and managed bees are well documented as effective pollinators of global crops of economic importance. However, the contributions by pollinators other than bees have been little explored despite their potential to contribute to crop production and stability in the face of environmental change. Non-bee pollinators include flies, beetles, moths, butterflies, wasps, ants, birds, and bats, among others. Here we focus on non-bee insects and synthesize 39 field studies from five continents that directly measured the crop pollination services provided by non-bees, honey bees, and other bees to compare the relative contributions of these taxa. Non-bees performed 25-50% of the total number of flower visits. Although non-bees were less effective pollinators than bees per flower visit, they made more visits; thus these two factors compensated for each other, resulting in pollination services rendered by non-bees that were similar to those provided by bees. In the subset of studies that mea...

Wild and managed bees are well documented as effective pollinators of global crops of economic importance. However, the contributions by pollinators other than bees have been little explored despite their potential to contribute to crop production and stability in the face of environmental change. Non-bee pollinators include flies, beetles, moths, butterflies, wasps, ants, birds, and bats, among others. Here we focus on non-bee insects and synthesize 39 field studies from five continents that directly measured the crop pollination services provided by non-bees, honey bees, and other bees to compare the relative contributions of these taxa. Non-bees performed 25-50% of the total number of flower visits. Although non-bees were less effective pollinators than bees per flower visit, they made more visits; thus these two factors compensated for each other, resulting in pollination services rendered by non-bees that were similar to those provided by bees. In the subset of studies that mea...

SUMMARYIt has been argued that trichromatic bees with photoreceptor spectral sensitivity peaks in the ultraviolet (UV), blue and green areas of the spectrum are blind to long wavelengths (red to humans). South American temperate forests (SATF) contain a large number of human red-looking flowers that are reported to be visited by the bumblebee Bombus dahlbomii. In the present study, B. dahlbomii's spectral sensitivity was measured through electroretinogram (ERG) recordings. No extended sensitivity to long wavelengths was found in B. dahlbomii. The spectral reflectance curves from eight plant species with red flowers were measured. The color loci occupied by these flowers in the bee color space was evaluated using the receptor noise-limited model. Four of the plant species have pure red flowers with low levels of chromatic contrast but high levels of negative L-receptor contrast. Finally, training experiments were performed in order to assess the role of achromatic cues in the det...

Human activities can generate a wide variety of direct and indirect effects on animals, which can manifest as environmental and genetic stressors. Several phenotypic markers have been proposed as indicators of these stressful conditions but have displayed contrasting results, depending, among others, on the phenotypic trait measured. Knowing the worldwide decline of multiple bumblebee species, it is important to understand these stressors and link them with the drivers of decline. We assessed the impact of several stressors (i.e. natural toxin-, parasite-, thermic- and inbreeding- stress) on both wing shape and size and their variability as well as their directional and fluctuating asymmetries. The total data set includes 650 individuals ofBombus terrestris(Hymenoptera: Apidae). Overall wing size and shape were affected by all the tested stressors. Except for the sinigrin (e.g. glucosinolate) stress, each stress implies a decrease of wing size. Size variance was affected by several ...

Since the middle of the 20th century, human activities have led to overall ecosystem contamination and to major modifications in landscape structure and composition. Mining activities represent a major source of environmental contamination by metal residues. The objective of our study was to evaluate the presence of heavy metals and other elements on stingless bee pollen, and compare them to samples of Suspended Particulate Material (SPM) in five points a Mineral Province, in Brazil. More than 50 elements were identified by ICP-OES and ICP-MS, after microwave digestion. Overall, we found a strong relation among elements present on pollen and SPM. Samples from the four areas exhibited higher levels of minerals compared to the reference site. Mineral levels varied widely within the two seasonal periods. Some elements, like Pb, Cd, As, Cu, Zn, and Fe were found at levels considered potentially toxic to human health. Pollen stored by stingless bees was a successful bioindicator, and dem...

Voltage‐gated Ca2+ channels are key transducers of cellular excitability and participate in several crucial physiological responses. In vertebrates, 10 Ca2+ channel genes, grouped in 3 families (CaV1, CaV2 and CaV3), have been described and characterized. Insects possess only one member of each family. These genes have been isolated in a limited number of species and very few have been characterized although, in addition to their crucial role, they may represent a collateral target for neurotoxic insecticides. We have isolated the 3 genes coding for the 3 Ca2+ channels expressed in Apis mellifera. This work provides the first detailed characterization of the honeybee T-type CaV3 Ca2+ channel and demonstrates the low toxicity of inhibiting this channel. Comparing Ca2+ currents recorded in bee neurons and myocytes with Ca2+ currents recorded in Xenopus oocytes expressing the honeybee CaV3 gene suggests native expression in bee muscle cells only. High‐voltage activated Ca2+ channels co...

As the rates of urbanization increase to unprecedented levels, the urgent need for sustainable housing and infrastructure has become a widespread global challenge with social, economic and ecological implications. The housing sector directly impacts the majority of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs). However, striving to achieve these goals in a compartmentalized or siloed manner has impeded the implementation of transformational solutions that increase the security and wellbeing of urban populations. Here, we introduce the Built Environment Ecosystems (BEE) framework, alongside a case study from the Ecological Living Module (ELM) UNEP Program, through an integrated systems approach with synergistic impact. We demonstrate how the multifunctional interlinking of building systems that harness local bioclimatic resources (ie. solar, wind, water, food, agricultural waste, biomaterials) can more viably address a broad spectrum of sustainable development challeng...

Several population genetic studies investigated the extent of gene flow and population connectivity in bumblebees. In general, no restriction in gene flow is considered for mainland populations of common bumblebee species. Whether this assumption holds true for all species is not known. An assessment of bumblebee genetic structure in the context of their geographic distribution is needed to prioritize conservation and management needs. Here, we conducted a genetic study on seven bumblebee species occurring in Belgium and Estonia. Using 16 microsatellite markers, we investigated genetic diversity and population structuring in each species. This is the first study investigating population structuring of both declining and stable bumblebee species on both small and large geographic scales. Our results showed no or only low population structuring between the populations of the restricted and declining bumblebee species on both scales, while significant structuring was found for populati...

Voltage‐gated Ca2+ channels are key transducers of cellular excitability and participate in several crucial physiological responses. In vertebrates, 10 Ca2+ channel genes, grouped in 3 families (CaV1, CaV2 and CaV3), have been described and characterized. Insects possess only one member of each family. These genes have been isolated in a limited number of species and very few have been characterized although, in addition to their crucial role, they may represent a collateral target for neurotoxic insecticides. We have isolated the 3 genes coding for the 3 Ca2+ channels expressed in Apis mellifera. This work provides the first detailed characterization of the honeybee T-type CaV3 Ca2+ channel and demonstrates the low toxicity of inhibiting this channel. Comparing Ca2+ currents recorded in bee neurons and myocytes with Ca2+ currents recorded in Xenopus oocytes expressing the honeybee CaV3 gene suggests native expression in bee muscle cells only. High‐voltage activated Ca2+ channels co...

ในบรรดาวิธีการในการแสวงหาความรู้ ความจริง ในปัจจุบันนั้น การวิจัยถือได้ว่าเป็นวิธีการที่เชื่อถือต่อความถูกต้องของคำตอบได้มากที่สุด เพราะการวิจัยอาศัยวิธีการที่เป็นวิทยาศาสตร์ อย่างไรก็ตาม ในความเป็นจริงเมื่อสืบค้นคำอธิบายของนักวิชาการต่อรายละเอียดปลีกย่อยในแต่ละขั้นตอนการวิจัยจะพบความหลากหลายของคำอธิบายตั้งแต่ต้นจนจบกระบวนการวิจัย บทความนี้จึงต้องการรวบรวมประเด็นความหลากหลายของคำอธิบายในแต่ละขั้นตอนการวิจัยเหล่านั้น  เพื่อสะท้อนให้เห็นถึงชุดของคำอธิบายต่าง ๆ โดยผู้เขียนได้แบ่งกระบวนการวิจัยออกเป็น 9 ขั้นตอนและได้รวบรวมคำถามและคำตอบที่หลากหลายในแต่ละประเด็น รวมถึงได้แสดงทัศนะส่วนตนในแต่ละประเด็นนั้น ๆ ด้วย ทั้งนี้ ผู้เขียนได้เสนอแนะทางออกสำหรับผู้ทำวิจัยต่อปัญหาความหลากหลายของคำอธิบายในหลักเกณฑ์ในการวิจัยเพื่อนำไปสู่การเป็นนักวิจัยมืออาชีพ ดังนี้ (1) ควรอ้างอิงหลักเกณฑ์ต่าง ๆ จากนักวิชาการเสมอ (2) ควรเลือกอ้างอิงหลักเกณฑ์จากนักวิชาการที่มีชื่อเสียงเป็นที่รู้จัก (3) ควรอ้างอิงข้อมูลจากหลายแหล่ง และ (4) ควรพิจารณาถึงเหตุผลที่แท้จริงของการกำหนดหลักเกณฑ์นั้น ๆ และตัดสินบนพื้นฐานที่เหมาะสมกับการวิจัยของตน

Wild and managed bees are well documented as effective pollinators of global crops of economic importance. However, the contributions by pollinators other than bees have been little explored despite their potential to contribute to crop production and stability in the face of environmental change. Non-bee pollinators include flies, beetles, moths, butterflies, wasps, ants, birds, and bats, among others. Here we focus on non-bee insects and synthesize 39 field studies from five continents that directly measured the crop pollination services provided by non-bees, honey bees, and other bees to compare the relative contributions of these taxa. Non-bees performed 25-50% of the total number of flower visits. Although non-bees were less effective pollinators than bees per flower visit, they made more visits; thus these two factors compensated for each other, resulting in pollination services rendered by non-bees that were similar to those provided by bees. In the subset of studies that mea...

Stingless bees of the genusTetragonulaconstruct a brood comb with a spiral or a target pattern architecture in three dimensions. Crystals possess these same patterns on the molecular scale. Here, we show that the same excitable-medium dynamics governs both crystal nucleation and growth and comb construction inTetragonula, so that a minimal coupled-map lattice model based on crystal growth explains how these bees produce the structures seen in their bee combs.

Human activities can generate a wide variety of direct and indirect effects on animals, which can manifest as environmental and genetic stressors. Several phenotypic markers have been proposed as indicators of these stressful conditions but have displayed contrasting results, depending, among others, on the phenotypic trait measured. Knowing the worldwide decline of multiple bumblebee species, it is important to understand these stressors and link them with the drivers of decline. We assessed the impact of several stressors (i.e. natural toxin-, parasite-, thermic- and inbreeding- stress) on both wing shape and size and their variability as well as their directional and fluctuating asymmetries. The total data set includes 650 individuals ofBombus terrestris(Hymenoptera: Apidae). Overall wing size and shape were affected by all the tested stressors. Except for the sinigrin (e.g. glucosinolate) stress, each stress implies a decrease of wing size. Size variance was affected by several ...

Several population genetic studies investigated the extent of gene flow and population connectivity in bumblebees. In general, no restriction in gene flow is considered for mainland populations of common bumblebee species. Whether this assumption holds true for all species is not known. An assessment of bumblebee genetic structure in the context of their geographic distribution is needed to prioritize conservation and management needs. Here, we conducted a genetic study on seven bumblebee species occurring in Belgium and Estonia. Using 16 microsatellite markers, we investigated genetic diversity and population structuring in each species. This is the first study investigating population structuring of both declining and stable bumblebee species on both small and large geographic scales. Our results showed no or only low population structuring between the populations of the restricted and declining bumblebee species on both scales, while significant structuring was found for populati...

Micropholis guyanensis (A.DC.) Pierre is a tree from the rainforests of tropical South America and includes two recognised and one informal subspecies. The species has a wide geographic distribution from Central America, northern and western South America to Amazonia and Bolivia, and is morphologically variable. All subspecies occur in the Reserva Florestal Adolpho Ducke just outside Manaus, Amazonas State in Brazil, and it can be questioned how they can grow in sympatry and retain their identity. We have studied vegetative variation, flower morphology and, to some degree, reproductive barriers. The species is dioecious, has five-merous, cream to greenish flowers that produce pollen, nectar and scent to attract pollinators. The flowering period is between June and October, and the plants set fruits, one seed in each, between November and April. There was no overlap in flowering period in the study area between two of the presumed subspecies, but both have similar floral morphology a...

Sensory proprieties of the honeys are amongst the main parameters for its quality determination, with sensory analysis working as a tool for measurement and quantification of the product characteristics by human senses. Sensorial quality control considers attributes as color, scent, flavor and consistency. These attributes are always interlinked and depend on volatile substances that are related to the original scents of flowers where the nectar was collected. Scent and flavor are directly related to honey’s color and mainly depend on its floral origin. This work had the objective to discern the sensory profiles of Apis mellifera honey produced by familiar farmers from the Iguape bay, in Bahia, Brazil. A total of 11 A. mellifera honey samples were obtained from beekeepers and processed in the Laboratory of the Nucleus for Insect Studies (INSECTA) of the Centro de Ciências Agrárias, Ambientais e Biológicas at Universidade Federal do Recôncavo da Bahia in Cruz das Almas, Bahia. The se...

Wild and managed bees are well documented as effective pollinators of global crops of economic importance. However, the contributions by pollinators other than bees have been little explored despite their potential to contribute to crop production and stability in the face of environmental change. Non-bee pollinators include flies, beetles, moths, butterflies, wasps, ants, birds, and bats, among others. Here we focus on non-bee insects and synthesize 39 field studies from five continents that directly measured the crop pollination services provided by non-bees, honey bees, and other bees to compare the relative contributions of these taxa. Non-bees performed 25-50% of the total number of flower visits. Although non-bees were less effective pollinators than bees per flower visit, they made more visits; thus these two factors compensated for each other, resulting in pollination services rendered by non-bees that were similar to those provided by bees. In the subset of studies that mea...

Wild and managed bees are well documented as effective pollinators of global crops of economic importance. However, the contributions by pollinators other than bees have been little explored despite their potential to contribute to crop production and stability in the face of environmental change. Non-bee pollinators include flies, beetles, moths, butterflies, wasps, ants, birds, and bats, among others. Here we focus on non-bee insects and synthesize 39 field studies from five continents that directly measured the crop pollination services provided by non-bees, honey bees, and other bees to compare the relative contributions of these taxa. Non-bees performed 25-50% of the total number of flower visits. Although non-bees were less effective pollinators than bees per flower visit, they made more visits; thus these two factors compensated for each other, resulting in pollination services rendered by non-bees that were similar to those provided by bees. In the subset of studies that mea...

The relationship of the natural population of bees of the earth is evaluated (Melipona beecheii) and its flora in the valley San Andrés, to inclination observations and samplings carried out in the formations studied vegetable. The melliferous plants and their use like tree of the nest of Melipona beecheii were studied for each one of the vegetable formations of the valley San Andrés, the indexes of diversity and their relationship were also analyzed with the values of density of colonies. It was determined that the density of colonies of bees of the earth is directly related with the wealth and diversity of species of melliferous plants found in the study area. He was also proven that the arboreal species more used as tree of the nest they are: Bursera simaruba, Guazuma ulmifolia, Psidium guajava, Mangifera indica and Roystonea regia.

Bal arılarının en önemli paraziti olan Varroa spp., bal arıların hemolenfini emerek koloninin zayıflamasına, ileri aşamalarda ise diğer hastalıklara karşı daha duyarlı hale gelmesine ve koloninin sönmesine sebep olmaktadır. Bu zararlı ile mücadele de birçok ruhsatlı kimyasal preparat Varroa mücadelesinde etkili olmakta, ancak aynı etken maddenin yoğun kullanılması parazitin bu kimyasallara karşı bağışıklık kazanmasına neden olmaktadır. Bu kimyasalların bilinçsiz kullanımı arıların sağlıklarını tehdit ettiği gibi arı ürünlerinde kalıntı bırakarak insan sağlığını da tehlikeye sokmaktadır. Son yıllarda araştırmalar, doğada kolay parçalanan doğal bileşikler oldukları için ve kimyasal kalıntı bırakmaması ve bağışıklık oluşturmaması gibi özelliklerinden dolayı bitkisel orjinli preparatlara odaklanmıştır. Bazı esansiyel yağ asitleri ile Varroa mücadelesinde başlıca thymol, oksalik asit ve kekik [(Thymus caucasicus) (Lamiaceae)] yağı olmakla beraber çördük [(Hyssopus officinalis L.) (Lamiac...

Since the middle of the 20th century, human activities have led to overall ecosystem contamination and to major modifications in landscape structure and composition. Mining activities represent a major source of environmental contamination by metal residues. The objective of our study was to evaluate the presence of heavy metals and other elements on stingless bee pollen, and compare them to samples of Suspended Particulate Material (SPM) in five points a Mineral Province, in Brazil. More than 50 elements were identified by ICP-OES and ICP-MS, after microwave digestion. Overall, we found a strong relation among elements present on pollen and SPM. Samples from the four areas exhibited higher levels of minerals compared to the reference site. Mineral levels varied widely within the two seasonal periods. Some elements, like Pb, Cd, As, Cu, Zn, and Fe were found at levels considered potentially toxic to human health. Pollen stored by stingless bees was a successful bioindicator, and dem...

The demand of concrete is increasing drastically due to infrastructure development in developing countries and to fulfil this ever-growing demand, RMC industry plays an important role. As per a report published by ICI in August 2015, if the efficiency at RMC plant can be improved by 10%, it will result into saving on Rs. 2400 Crore per year. To improve this efficiency, optimization of dispatching schedule of RMC truck can be done. The main aim of the research is to determine best suited algorithm to optimize dispatching schedule of RMC plant by using multi-plant and multi-site operation condition. The research also aims to determine various factors affecting dispatching schedule of RMC plant by using transit mixtures. To achieve the aim, various route optimization has been studied and compared. It is concluded that, mixing duration, number of transit mixtures, concrete demand of construction site, distance of construction site, casting duration at site, allowed buffer duration, numb...

Wild and managed bees are well documented as effective pollinators of global crops of economic importance. However, the contributions by pollinators other than bees have been little explored despite their potential to contribute to crop production and stability in the face of environmental change. Non-bee pollinators include flies, beetles, moths, butterflies, wasps, ants, birds, and bats, among others. Here we focus on non-bee insects and synthesize 39 field studies from five continents that directly measured the crop pollination services provided by non-bees, honey bees, and other bees to compare the relative contributions of these taxa. Non-bees performed 25-50% of the total number of flower visits. Although non-bees were less effective pollinators than bees per flower visit, they made more visits; thus these two factors compensated for each other, resulting in pollination services rendered by non-bees that were similar to those provided by bees. In the subset of studies that mea...

The nature of wireless propagation may reduce the QoS of the applications, such that some packages can be delayed or lost. For this reason, the design of wireless control applications must be faced in a holistic way to avoid degrading the performance of the control algorithms. This paper is aimed at improving the reliability of wireless control applications in the event of communication degradation or temporary loss at the wireless links. Two controller levels are used: sophisticated algorithms providing better performance are executed in a central node, whereas local independent controllers, implemented as back-up controllers, are executed next to the process in case of QoS degradation. This work presents a reliable strategy for switching between central and local controllers avoiding that plants may become uncontrolled. For validation purposes, the presented approach was used to control a planar robot. A Fuzzy Logic control algorithm was implemented as a main controller at a high ...