Native Bees

This study determined the longevity of caged workers fed with different diets (carbohydrate only, bee bread, unfermented pollen substitute diet, and fermented pollen substitute diet). Survival rates were higher for bees fed the fermented versus the non-fermented diet, though the difference was not significant. The honey bees consumed significantly more fermented than an unfermented diet. Hemolymph proteins were significantly higher in bees that had been fed a fermented versus an unfermented diet. Though still significantly lower than in bees fed on beebread, where vitellogenin (an essential storage protein for honey bees) levels were increased significantly in bees fed the fermented versus the non-fermented diet and were similar to and not significantly different when compared to beebread-fed bees. We conclude that fermented by beebread-derived microorganisms can improve the nutritional value, acceptance, and utility of an artificial protein diet and lifespan of the honey bee's workers.

Beekeeping is an old practice in Egypt since the time of Pharaohs. The
ancient Egyptians used mud hives to keep honey bees. Nowadays, modern Langstroth beehives are being used all over Egypt except a few locations in South Egypt where mud hives are still used. This article presents a close up with the mud hives (the historic beehives of the ancient Egyptian). It is well known that Egypt is among the oldest countries in beekeeping and the ancient Egyptians were able
to keep bees to harvest honey, and they were able to perform migratory
beekeeping across the Nile River. The majority of beekeepers saw drawings of the mud hives without getting a chance to see these hives in reality. Therefore, this article is interesting to increase the knowledge of beekeepers about ancient beekeeping in Egypt.

En este momento Colombia tiene un gran reto frente a la polinización puesto que es uno de los países más biodiversos del mundo, lo que hace que se genere una relación estrecha de polinización entre muchas plantas y polinizadores. Esa relación tan estrecha entre las plantas con sus polinizadores hace que tengamos ecosistemas saludables que generan así bienestar humano a través de las contribuciones de la naturaleza.
Colombia es un país eminentemente agrícola, con cultivos de pancoger hasta cultivos tecnificados. En las distintas regiones agroecológicas del país se cultivan ají, algodón, berenjena, cacao, café, calabaza, caucho, cebolla, especies maderables, flores, diversos frutales, fríjoles, hortalizas, maíz, melón, mijo, ñame, pastos, pepino, pimiento, plátano, sandía, sorgo, yuca, zapallo, entre muchos otros. Cultivos tecnificados como aguacate, banano, café, cacao, caña de azúcar, limón, mandarina, naranja, palma aceitera, papa, soya, tomate. Acerca de estos cultivos se tiene mucha información sobre sus técnicas de manejo, requisitos agronómicos, control de plagas, técnicas de cosecha y postcosecha, quizás algo de la biología floral y la fructificación, pero poco acerca de sus agentes polinizadores y el proceso de polinización. Generalmente se usa Apis mellifera para cubrir esas necesidades, pero sin mayor información de cuáles son los polinizadores más efectivos para los diversos cultivos.
La necesidad de producción de alimentos para una población humana en permanente crecimiento, generó la intensificación agrícola (monocultivos), llevando a la disminución de la diversidad vegetal, incrementando el uso de agroquímicos, simplificando los paisajes y los hábitats locales y causando también la disminución de la diversidad de polinizadores.

Geographical Information System (GIS) is a computer-based system that can perform analysis for various datasets in relation to specific geographical locations and has been widely applied in agriculture. So far, GIS has been used in relatively few studies related to honey bees and beekeeping, but this article aims to review those previously performed and to present trends to apply GIS in beekeeping and then to help and guide researchers to perform more studies utilizing it. GIS can clearly be utilized to select suitable locations for apiaries, to map bee plants, to study bee behavior, diseases and pests, and to predict the effects of climate change on honey bees beside other benefits for beekeeping. Many obstacles and problems facing beekeeping can be mapped and analyzed using GIS, and other techniques can be used with it to perform the required tasks as presented in this review.

Four states contain over 401 species of bees, about which little is known except for a few common species. Forests of Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont were largely cleared in colonial times, then trees grew back as of the 1870s. Canopy closure, urbanization, and intensive agriculture have led to reduced habitats for bees. Managed and wild bees of the region are found especially in forest openings. Many visit flowers across different plant species, though an estimated 15% visit only one or a few plant taxa. Because bee life histories, population dynamics, and host plant relations are incompletely known, an emphasis on habitat is appropriate because the environment can be manipulated. We list 15 bee habitats with natural and anthropogenic features, and suggest 40 plant taxa that may be effective in plantings for bees. Pollination systems in two native crops, lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium) and cranberry (V. macrocarpon), are better-studied than most crops; from these we developed an economic perspective on altering habitat to support bees. Threats to bees include habitat loss, pests and pathogens, pesticides, and climate change. We consider practical aspects for improving pollinator habitats. The adoption of suggested habitat improvements will help meet goals in bee conservation and pollination security, and could aid in protecting pollination of the native flora. We identify gaps in knowledge to help prioritize future research directions.

The main objectives of this research are: 1) the creation of an expert network for the evaluation of the extinction risk of wild bees species in Italy; 2) the evaluation of the extinction risk for the species potentially at risk; 3) the identification of the main threats and the conservation actions needed to tackle them. The assessments of extinction risk are based on the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria and the most updated guidelines. The assessments have been carried out in a workshop with taxonomic focus and involving experts covering different regions of Italy and have been evaluated according to the IUCN standards. A total of 151 species of wild bees native to Italy, for which some indication of decline exists, have been included in the evaluation. The populations were evaluated in their Italian area, including large and small islands where necessary. Of the 151 species assessed, 5 are Critically Endangered and have not been recorded recently. For this reason they are classified as Possibly Extinct. Of the remaining species, 2 are Critically Endangered, 10 are Endangered, 4 are Vulnerable. An additional 13 species are Near Threatened, meaning that they are close to one of the three threat categories. The main threats to wild bees are related to land use change (agricultural intensification and expansion, urbanization, but also - for some species - natural reforestation following the abandonment of rural areas and overgrazing). Some species may be sensitive to climate change. The Red List is a fundamental tool for the identification of conservation priorities, but it is not a list of priorities on its own. Other elements instrumental to priority setting include the cost of action, the probability of success, and the proportion of the global population of each species living in Italy, which determines the national responsibility in the long term conservation of that species.

The 43rd International Apicultural
Congress Apimondia took place in the
Ukrainian capital, the city of Kiev on
September 29th – October 04th 2013, in
which we were participants and presented
our work. On November 04th – 9th 2014
we also participated in the 10th Apislavia
Congress which was arranged concurrently
with the 4th International Mugla Beekeeping
& Pine Honey Congress in Oludeniz,
Mugla Province, in Turkey.

Honey bee, Apis mellifera L., is considered as an essential organism to the agricultural sector due to its role in pollination and alleviation of poverty in rural areas. Many pests attack honey bee colonies causing severe damages and economic losses. These pests include Varroa mites, Vespa hornets, wax moths, small hive beetles, and parasitic flies. Using chemical methods to control these pests causes some negative effects on honey bees and contaminates their products, while using biological control agents is promising and has no serious hazards. This article aimed to review available studies on the role of biological control agents mainly predators, parasitoids, and pathogens in controlling bee's pests and to present new perspectives. Also, obstacles of using biocontrol agents inside and outside the hives were presented. This article is essential for planning integrated management programs for honey bee pests.

Wild bee communities provide underappreciated but critical agricultural pollination services. Given predicted global shortages in pollination services, managing agroecosystems to support thriving wild bee communities is, therefore, central to ensuring sustainable food production. Benefits of natural (including semi-natural) habitat for wild bee abundance and diversity on farms are well documented. By contrast, few studies have examined toxicity of pesticides on wild bees, let alone effects of farm-level pesticide exposure on entire bee communities. Whether beneficial natural areas could mediate effects of harmful pesticides on wild bees is also unknown. Here, we assess the effect of conventional pesticide use on the wild bee community visiting apple (Malus domestica) within a gradient of percentage natural area in the landscape. Wild bee community abundance and species richness decreased linearly with increasing pesticide use in orchards one year after application; however, pesticid...

La cría de abejas sin aguijón en Colombia es una actividad que viene expandiéndose en respuesta a la demanda de mercados de productos diferenciados y especiales, y al aumento del uso de estos insectos como animales domésticos, en proyectos productivos y actividades de investigación y educación. Así mismo, alertas sobre la crisis de polinizadores a nivel mundial, han motivado la identificación, cría y conservación de polinizadores alternativos a Apis mellifera. A pesar de conocerse relativamente poco sobre la meliponicultura en el país, se ha caracterizado parcialmente su diversidad biológica (al menos 34 especies criadas, solo en las regiones Andina, Caribe y Amazónica), y se han documentado usos y conocimientos asociados, los cuales son generados y reproducidos por meliponicultores con características étnicas, socioculturales y económicas muy variadas. Existe un número creciente de iniciativas, proyectos y convenios entre productores, asociaciones, instituciones y universidades. En los últimos años, un cierto nivel de articulación entre la academia y el sector productivo ha ayudado a generar conocimiento básico y a crear espacios de formación y enseñanza de la biología, conservación y manejo de las abejas, pero también se ha incrementado la necesidad de información y tecnología adaptada al contexto colombiano, pues las principales referencias sobre técnicas de cría y manejo provienen de otros países. Este crecimiento también ha generado un incremento en la demanda de productos y de colonias para los nuevos meliponarios. Mucha de la miel y las colonias comercializadas provienen de nidos silvestres, y recientemente han comenzado a trasladarse de manera indiscriminada colonias de varias especies de una región a otra, generando entre otras cosas problemas de adaptación y supervivencia. Esto ejerce presión sobre las poblaciones naturales y debilita la base biológica y genética de la meliponicultura. Por otra parte, la tecnificación y modernización suelen equipararse con homogeneización, lo cual tiene la desventaja de priorizar un número reducido de especies consideradas " promisorias " ignorando la importancia de la diversidad para la sostenibilidad. Lo mismo sucede en el campo del conocimiento, en el que en ocasiones se ignora el saber tradicional, popular y local asociado a la biodiversidad. Existe el riesgo de que este nuevo escenario de expansión desordenada de la meliponicultura amenace su propia continuidad, por lo que son necesarios escenarios de reflexión y análisis sobre la variedad de contextos de la meliponicultura en Colombia que consideren variables socioculturales y ambientales, a la par con lo científico, técnico-productivo y comercial que suele tener mayor atención. Es importante revisar las prácticas actuales de uso y manejo de las abejas sin aguijón a partir de perspectivas que permitan conocer, valorar, conservar y gestionar las bases biológicas, sociales y culturales de la meliponicultura.

Pollinator-dependent agriculture heavily relies upon a single pollinator-the honey bee. To diversify pollination strategies, growers are turning to alternatives. Densely planted reservoirs of pollen- and nectar-rich flowers (pollination reservoirs, hereafter "PRs") may improve pollination services provided by wild bees. Our focal agroecosystem, lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium Aiton), exists in a simple landscape uniquely positioned to benefit from PRs. First, we contrast bee visitation rates and use of three types of PR. We consider the effects of PRs on wild bee diversity and the composition of bumble bee pollen loads. We contrast field-level crop pollination services between PRs and controls four years postestablishment. Last, we calculate the time to pay for PR investment. Social bees preferentially used clover plantings; solitary bees preferentially used wildflower plantings. On average, bumble bee pollen loads in treatment fields contained 37% PR pollen. PRs significantly increased visitation rates to the crop in year 4, and exerted a marginally significant positive influence on fruit set. The annualized costs of PRs were covered by the fourth year using the measured increase in pollination services. Our findings provide evidence of the positive impact of PRs on crop pollination services.

Context Anthropogenic landscape simplification and natural habitat loss can negatively affect wild bees. Alternatively, anthropogenic land-use change may diversify landscapes, creating complementary habitats that maintain overall resource continuity and diversity. Objectives We examined the effects of landscape composition, including land-cover diversity and percent semi-natural habitat, on wild bee abundance and species richness within apples, a pollinator-dependent crop. We also explored whether different habitats within diverse landscapes can provide complementary floral resources for bees across space and time.

The bees of the family Halictidae Thomson, 1869 from Dominica are reviewed. Seven new species are described and illustrated: Lasioglossum (Dialictus) kalinago sp. nov., L. (D.) dominicense sp. nov., L. (D.) kilpatrickae sp. nov., L. (Habralictellus) roseauense sp. nov., Sphecodes diablotinus sp. nov., S. albifacies sp. nov. and Habralictus antillarus sp. nov. A description and images of the previously unknown female of Microsphecodes dominicanus (Stage, 1972) are provided. In total, eleven species are recognized: eight nest-building species and three kleptoparasites. All halictid species from Dominica are currently known only from the island. A key to halictid bees from Dominica is provided.

Beekeeping is a dynamic activity and is impacted by many factors. A comprehensive survey was done from September 2013 to April 2015 to understand the current status of beekeeping in the Arabian countries, and to identify the urgent needs for beekeeping development. Modern social communication means were utilized to perform the survey. Total of 138 respondents had participated in the study from 14 Arabian countries. Most of the respondents were with age from 31 to 45 years old (42.8% of the total). The most of them were also with high educational level with B.Sc. or higher degree (81.2% of the total), and 58.7% of them were with experience less than 10 years in beekeeping. The majority of the respondents preferred the indigenous bee races over the imported ones, and 51.4% of them were only honey producers. The incorrect management of bee colonies was considered by the majority of the respondents as the most important factor behind death of the bee colonies. It could be concluded that planned training programs on beekeeping are highly required. The role of the extension agencies is very essential to prepare suitable training programs for beekeepers. The use of the indigenous bee races in beekeeping should be supported. Effective laws and legislations to prevent honey adulteration and organize honey marketing issues are recommended to be done. Information about beekeeping in many Arabian countries are not available. Therefore, the results of this study can be considered as a baseline for any future investigations.

The environmental imbalance in Atlantic Forest reserves, specially those which are closest to urban areas, is today the main cause of the proliferation of the mosquito which are vectors of the viruses enemies. An environmental imbalance where the vector predator is absent, or too few in number, will generate an increase in the vector. This can be studied and verified through a predator-prey model using the Lotka-Volterra differential equations. The action of bees in pollination will generate food within these areas of the Atlantic Forest, starting the process of restoring Biodiversity in this part of the biome. A direct consequence will therefore be the control of the population of mosquitoes that carry dengue, chikungunya and Zika, due to the increase in mosquito predators.

In 2011, several wild North American bumble bee pollinator species were reported to have declined by up to 96% in relative abundance in comparison to historic estimates, and one species was speculated to be extinct. None of these species have yet been documented to have recovered from these declines and additional species are now suggested to be at risk. Imperiled species in particular show increased specificity to narrow climatic envelopes, as opposed to putatively stable species. My dissertation describes patterns of population genetic diversity, structure, and gene flow pathways associated with climate variation and historical biogeography of bumble bees distributed in western North America. The results of my dissertation research suggests that (1) historic climate variability predicts contemporary patterns of population genetic structure and divergence in an economically important species, (2) color variability in bumble bees is likely associated with lineage diversification and phylogeography, (3) bumble bee community structure across evolutionary time is likely driven by Müllerian mimicry at narrow spatial scales, and (4) bumble bees inhabiting specialized ecological niches are associated with high levels of genetic fixation at regional spatial scales in the Pacific Northwest. The results of my research directly contribute to current efforts to effectively manage, conserve, and advocate for wild bumble bee pollinators in the context of global change.

Recommended Citation
Koch, Jonathan Berenguer, "Biogeography, Population Genetics, and Community Structure of North American Bumble Bees" (2015). All Graduate Theses and Dissertations. Paper 4577.
http://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/4577

There is a need for finding new, clean and cheap energy sources. Honey bees, on the other side, provide the agricultural sector with essential pollination service to crops. One hive contains thousands of bees, and hundreds of hives can be kept in one place (i.e. apiary). This study, for the first time, describes designs for the possibility of producing electricity from honey bee hives utilizing the kinetic energy of bees. The generated energy is expected to be clean and cheap, and without any negative impacts on the bees. The produced energy can be increased using large number of hives and can be stored. This study provides a new trend to produce energy from insects.

There is an ongoing campaign to DNA barcode the world's >20 000 bee species. Recent revisions of Lasioglossum (Dialictus) (Hymenoptera: Halictidae) for Canada and the eastern United States were completed using integrative taxonomy. DNA barcode data from 110 species of L. (Dialictus) are examined for their value in identification and discovering additional taxonomic diversity. Specimen identification success was estimated using the best close match method. Error rates were 20% relative to current taxonomic understanding. Barcode Index Numbers (BINs) assigned using Refined Single Linkage Analysis (RESL) and barcode gaps using the Automatic Barcode Gap Discovery (ABGD) method were also assessed. RESL was incongruent for 44.5% of species, although some cryptic diversity may exist. Forty-three of 110 species were part of merged BINs with multiple species. The barcode gap is non-existent for the data set as a whole and ABGD showed levels of discordance similar to the RESL. The viridatum species-group is particularly problematic, so that DNA barcodes alone would be misleading for species delimitation and specimen identification. Character-based methods using fixed nucleotide substitutions could improve specimen identification success in some cases. The use of DNA barcoding for species discovery for standard taxonomic practice in the absence of a well-defined barcode gap is discussed. Résumé : Un effort est en cours pour réaliser le codage a ` barres de l'ADN pour les >20 000 espèces d'abeilles. De récentes révisions au sein du genre Lasioglossum (Dialectus) (Hymenoptera : Halictidae) au Canada et dans le nord-est des États-Unis ont été menées par une approche de taxonomie intégrative. Les données de codes a ` barres de l'ADN pour 110 espèces du genre L. (Dialectus) ont été examinées pour leur utilité en matière d'identification et de découverte d'une diversité taxonomique additionnelle. Le succès en matière d'identification des spécimens a été estimée a ` l'aide de la méthode de la plus grande correspondance (« best close match »). Le taux d'erreurs avoisinait les 20 % par rapport aux connaissances taxonomiques actuelles. La justesse de l'assignation des numéros d'index (BIN; « Barcode Index Numbers ») assignés en utilisant l'approche RESL (« Refined Single Linkage Analysis ») et de la séparation des codes a ` barres a ` l'aide de la méthode ABGD (« Automatic Barcode Gap Discovery ») a également été évaluée. Le RESL était congruent pour 44,5 % des espèces, bien qu'une certaine diversité cryptique pourrait exister. Quarante-trois des 110 espèces ont été assignées a ` des BIN composés de plusieurs espèces. Il n'y avait pas de séparation entre les codes a ` barres au sein des données dans leur ensemble et la méthode ABGD a montré des niveaux de discordance semblables a ` la méthode RESL. Le « groupe d'espèces viridatum » était particulièrement problématique, de telle manière que les codes a ` barres seuls seraient sujets a ` erreur pour la délimitation des espèces et l'identification des spécimens. Les méthodes basées sur les caractères utilisant des substitutions nucléotidiques fixées pourraient améliorer l'identification des spécimens dans certains cas. Les auteurs discutent de l'emploi du codage a ` barres de l'ADN comme méthode taxonomique standard pour la découverte d'espèces en l'absence d'une séparation bien définie des codes a ` barres. [Traduit par la Rédaction]

In this paper, I will argue that, while important, the partial ban on neonicotinoids in Ontario does not go far enough to address the pollinator crisis, partly due to the role of agrochemical corporations such as Bayer CropScience and Syngenta, manufacturers of neonicotinoids, in the development of the policy. I will argue further that the agrochemical industry intervened in the debate around neonicotinoid pesticides in Ontario in order to shape and influence the process, most notably by forming powerful coalitions with large farmers’ organizations such as the Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO). In Part One I will outline the current research on the impact of neonicotinoid pesticides on bees, including the problems caused by the uncertainty inherent in complex ecosystems. In Part Two I will examine the process utilized by the Ontario government in the creation of the partial ban on neonicotinoids and investigate the heavy role played in it by the agrochemical industry. I will examine the coalition the agrochemical industry formed with the GFO and how this shaped the narratives deployed in the debate about a neonicotinoid ban in Ontario. I will conclude by arguing that corporate manipulation of the creation of public policy regarding pollinator health in Ontario is an indication of the overall functioning of the capitalist-industrial agricultural system. Challenging this system will require radical social movements led by a coalition of environmentalists, bee-centered beekeepers and small-scale farmers. This coalition can put forward an agroecological counter-narrative that acknowledges the uncertainty inherent in complex ecosystems and posits small-scale farmers as stewards of biodiversity, allowing for the simultaneous flourishing of non-human nature and people.

There is substantial debate about the relative roles of climate change and human activities on
biodiversity and species demographies over the Holocene. In some cases, these two factors can be
resolved using fossil data, but for many taxa such data are not available. Inferring historical
demographies of taxa has become common, but the methodologies are mostly recent and their
shortcomings often unexplored. The bee genus Homalictus is developing into a tractable model
system for understanding how native bee populations in tropical islands have responded to past
climate change. We greatly expand on previous studies using sequences of the mitochondrial gene
COI from 474 specimens and between 171 and 3,928 autosomal (DArTSeq) SNP loci from 19
specimens of the native Fijian bee, Homalictus fijiensis (Perkins & Cheesman, 1928), to explore
its historical demography using coalescent and mismatch analyses. We ask whether past changes
in demography were human- or climate-driven, while considering analytical assumptions. We
show that inferred changes in population sizes are too recent to be explained by past climate
change. Instead we find that a dramatic increase in population size for the main island of Viti Levu
coincides with increasing occupation by humans and their modification of the environment. We
found no corresponding change in bee population size for another major island, Kadavu, where
human populations and agricultural activities have been historically very low. Our analyses
indicate that molecular approaches can be used to disentangle the impacts of humans and climate
change on a major tropical pollinator and that stringent analytical approaches are required for
reliable interpretation of results.

Very little effort has been made to investigate bee population dynamics among intact
wilderness areas. The presence of newly-arrived feral Africanized honey bee (AHB),
Apis mellifera (Apidae), populations was studied for 10-17 years in areas previously
with few or no escaped European apiary honey bees. Here I describe and interpret the
major results from studies in three neotropical forests: French Guiana, Panama and
Yucatan, Mexico (5˚ to 19˚ N. latitude). The exotic Africanized honey bees did not
produce a negative effect on native bees, including species that were solitary or highly
eusocial. Major differences over time were found in honey bee abundance on flowers
near habitat experiencing the greatest degree of disturbance, compared to deep forest
areas. At the population level, sampled at nest blocks, or at flower patches, or at light
traps, there was no sudden decline in bees after AHB arrival, and relatively steady or
sinusoidal population dynamics. However, the native bees shifted their foraging time
or floral species. A principal conclusion is that such competition is silent, in
floristically rich habitats, because bees compensate behaviorally for competition.
Other factors limit their populations.

Propolis (bee glue) is considered among bee products with medicinal properties. The majority of plants in Egypt are field crops which cultivated by farmers. Such crops may supply bee colonies with nectar/pollen, but are not good sources for resin due to their short life cycles. This study aimed to explore potential sites for producing high amounts of propolis from bee colonies based on a remote sensing analysis. The study was performed on a Governorate with intensive agricultural activity in Egypt (Assiut Governorate). The methodology depended on isolating trees from the satellite image using unsupervised classification followed by supervised classification based on numerous geographical coordinates of trees. Trees were transferred into points, and then point density was calculated to classify the study location into classes according to density. Sites with the very high numbers of trees were especially recommended for producing propolis on a commercial scale by beekeepers. Giving more attention to propolis production can enhance the income of beekeepers and maximize the economic benefit from bee colonies.

There are enormous challenges for managed honey bee, Apis mellifera, colonies in the world. Climate change is expected to be the major threat for honey bees in the future. Climate change can impact honey bee colonies negatively and/or positively. Unfortunately, few studies have been done on impacts of climate change on beekeeping. In this research, the possible changes in temperature and some bioclimatic factors in Egypt during near future 2070 were investigated using available datasets. Geographical information system (GIS) was used to perform the study. Potential impacts of climate change on honey bee colonies were then expected using visual comparison technique. It is expected that thermal stress on honey bee colonies in Egypt will be the major problem for beekeepers
especially during summer. No major changes are expected to happen in the other bioclimatic factors
including precipitation. Beekeepers are advised to harvest honey from their colonies earlier than
current time. Some honey bee diseases and pests are not expected to be a great challenge in the
near future. For future challenges, studies towards obtaining heat tolerant bees are very essential.
Developing suitable methods for protecting honey bee colonies from thermal stress during summer
are required.

Cucurbita pepo L. (Cucurbitaceae) was an integral component of the diet of Pre-
Columbian Mesoamerican cultures and is an important cash crop with high cultural value in
contemporaneous indigenous populations of Guatemala. Despite the increasing attention to
native bees as pollinators of cucurbit crops, little is known about the diversity of bees that visit
or pollinate these crops in many regions. Based on collections from 11 observational plots of
C. pepo established in fi ve localities and maintained by the local community across the Cloud
Forest Corridor in Guatemala, we documented 27 bee species belonging to 14 genera in Apidae
and Halictidae as fl oral visitors. Species composition was signifi cantly different among plots
and among localities; however, honey bees (Apis mellifera Linnaeus, 1758) (Apidae: Apini) and
the stingless bee Partamona bilineata (Say, 1837) (Apidae: Meliponini) were the most abundant
fl ower visitors in all plots and localities, accounting up to 80% of the total number of visits.
Two species of squash bees were recorded, Peponapis apiculata (Cresson, 1878) and P. limitaris
(Cockerell, 1906) (Apidae: Eucerini), but they were rare (3.4% of total number of specimens)
across all plots and localities. Based on pollinator exclusion experiments as well as comparisons
of fruit weight and seed number and weight, we confi rmed the dependence of this crop on insect
pollination and the role of honey bees and P. bilineata as main pollinators in the observational
plots. Surveys of bees in the surrounding vegetation of the plots indicated a higher diversity (36
species of 28 genera) than in the plots; about 40% of these species are also common visitors of
fl owers of C. pepo.

Se ofrece un panorama de la diversidad, la historia natural y la conservación de las abejas de Costa Rica, las cuales se destacan por mantener una relación simbiótica con las flores y por preservar el planeta.

AUTORES: Jorge Arturo Lobo Segura, Gordon W. Frankie, Ingrid Aguilar Monge, Eduardo Herrera González, Mariana Acuña Cordero, Mauricio Fernández Otárola, Paul E. Hanson Snortum , Rollin Coville

Beekeeping is essential for the global food supply, yet honeybee health and hive numbers are increasingly threatened by habitat alteration, climate change, agrochemical overuse, pathogens, diseases, and insect pests. However, pests and diseases that have unknown spatial distribution and
influences are blamed for diminishing honeybee colonies over the world. The greater wax moth (GWM), Galleria mellonella, is a pervasive pest of the honeybee, Apis mellifera. It has an international distribution that causes severe loss to the beekeeping industry. The GWM larvae burrow into the edge of unsealed cells that have pollen, bee brood, and honey through to the midrib of the wax comb. Burrowing larvae leave behind masses of webs that cause honey to leak out and entangle
emerging bees, resulting in death by starvation, a phenomenon called galleriasis. In this study, the maximum entropy algorithm implemented in (Maxent) model was used to predict the global spatial distribution of GWM throughout the world. Two representative concentration pathways (RCPs) 2.6 and 8.5 of three global climate models (GCMs), were used to forecast the global distribution of GWM in 2050 and 2070. The Maxent models for GWM provided a high value of the Area Under Curve equal to 0.8 -0.001, which was a satisfactory result. Furthermore, True Skilled Statistics assured the perfection of the resultant models with a value equal to 0.7. These values indicated a significant correlation between the models and the ecology of the pest species. The models also showed a very high habitat suitability for the GWM in hot-spot honey exporting and importing countries. Furthermore, we extrapolated the economic impact of such pests in both feral and wild honeybee populations and consequently the global market of the honeybee industry.

Climate change and human activities are impacting species distribution, and thus, tracking species movements is a key aspect for their conservation and for understanding their biology. Among the bumblebees that are changing distribution, one of the most striking cases of a fast and natural range expansion is the eastern Mediterranean Bombus haematurus. Here we report the first Italian records of this species, with observations from the N-E Italy at a distance of 332 Km from the edge of the historical distribution. These are the westernmost known occurrences of this species and they are not far from a large series of records in several Central European countries of recent colonization. Here, we also obtained and made publicly available the reference COI barcode sequence of Bombus haematurus and shown that is significantly different from other similar species at this genetic marker. Coupling morphology, field-data and genetic identity should greatly improve the efficiency of tracking species movements and therefore also their knowledge in both recently colonized and historical areas.

Pollination of avocado flowers is essential for fruit production and is facilitated by various insect taxa. Currently, there
is limited information available on the community structure of the pollinators of avocado crops in East Africa. We duly
present the distinct groups of insects visiting avocado flowers across two most important avocado producing countries in
the East African region. Insects were swept from avocado flowers along transects and sorted by morphological features
that classified them into orders, families, and genera. Five common orders were identified, namely: Coleoptera, Diptera,
Heteroptera, Hymenoptera, and Lepidoptera. The relative abundance of Hymenoptera and Diptera were highest (49% and
22% respectively) hence we further identified them to the families and genera taxonomic groups. Three Dipteran families were
found (Calliphoridae, Muscidae, and Syrphidae) from which we recognized five genera: Chrysomya, Spilogona, Eristalinus,
Phytomia and Syritta. Hymenoptera on the other hand were placed into two general groups; bees and wasps. For bees, family
Apidae was represented by Apis, Ceratina, Meliponula, and Xylocopa whereas seven diverse wasp families (Braconidae,
Philanthidae, Vespidae, Ichneumonidae, Eumeninae, Thynnidae and Pompilidae) were also noted. The occurrence of
Coleoptera and Lepidoptera varied across the three orchards while the rest of the orders remained unaffected. We further
recorded the insect’s potential pollinator functions and concluded that the main pollinators of avocado flowers in the region
are members of Syrphidae and Apidae families. This information serves as a foundation for avocado pollination studies in
the East African region that are important for improving pollination services and insect pollinators’ conservation.

En Colombia la ganadería es una actividad ampliamente extendida, que se lleva a cabo en todas las regiones del país, a diferentes escalas y con características socioambientales, técnicas y productivas diversas. Diferentes fuentes estiman que entre 30 y 40 millones de hectáreas son utilizadas para la actividad ganadera en Colombia (cerca de 30% del área del país), si bien solo la mitad de los suelos tiene esta vocación. Más allá de su relativa importancia económica, los impactos ambientales y sociales asociados a esta actividad incluyen deforestación y fragmentación de ecosistemas, degradación de suelos, contaminación y pérdida de biodiversidad por una parte, así como conflictos de tenencia y uso de la tierra, entre otros. La transformación y simplificación de ecosistemas complejos en monocultivos de pasto afecta la biodiversidad y los procesos ecológicos, causando disminuciones en las poblaciones de organismos como los polinizadores. Sin embargo, en las últimas décadas han surgido propuestas orientadas a la reconversión de la ganadería, en busca de modelos sostenibles de producción que incorporan aspectos sociales y ambientales y contribuyen a atenuar los impactos sobre la biodiversidad y los servicios ecosistémicos. Tal es el caso de los sistemas agroforestales y silvopastoriles, en los que se han encontrado mejoras en indicadores ambientales, a la vez que incremento de la capacidad productiva de la ganadería, comparativamente con otros sistemas, tanto extensivos como tecnificados. Existen trabajos que evidencian vínculos de algunos grupos de fauna (particularmente aves y artrópodos como hormigas y coleópteros) con sistemas silvopastoriles y agroforestales, pero en Colombia es poco lo que se conoce de la relación de polinizadores (especialmente abejas) con estos sistemas.

Il progetto trova la sua ambientazione nello spazio abbandonato delle Ex Officine Grandi Riparazioni di Firenze, situato in viale Fratelli Rosselli, via delle Cascine, un luogo abbandonato da anni 1 da quando in particolare la mobilità regionale ha avuto un calo in favore di una connessione inter-regionale, pertanto la stazione Porta a Prato è stata progressivamente disusata creando così un vuoto urbano inutilizzato.
La funzione della struttura è quella della riparazione e manutenzione delle carrozze che ad oggi non è più ad appannaggio di questa struttura. L’estensione dell’area si sviluppa in parallelo al parco del Visarno partendo dalla stazione Leopolda fino all’altezza della Manifattura Tabacchi.
Un’area complessiva di 92mila metri quadri con una superficie di 42mila se si considerano gli stabili produttivi ora inutilizzati.
Questa zona della città rappresenta una delle aree più verdi della città di Firenze, data la vicinanza al parco del Visarno e delle Cascine pur affacciandosi ai viali di circonvallazione ed essendo praticamente accanto al centro della città. Lo stato di abbandono del sito ha provocato una situazione non solo di degrado ambientale, dato sia dal decadimento della struttura stessa, sia dalla quantità di rifiuti portati in un secondo momento, ma anche di degrado sociale diventando luogo di concentrazione per senzatetto e di spaccio.
Ciò che manca a questa struttura è una nuova funzione che se lasciata allo stato attuale non solo costituisce uno spreco in termini di spazio, strutture e anche in termini economici, visto che l’investimento fatto, non ha più un ritorno di capitale. Il progetto attraverso le strutture per il vertical farming e le strategie rigenerative di coltivazioni a terra pone il primo passo verso una riqualificazione dello spazio per adibirlo a luogo per la agricoltura di vecchia e nuova generazione, a terra e in idroponica, e crea un nuovo contesto per l’apicoltura urbana di centrale importanza sia per l’ecosistema sia per l’aspetto divulgativo.
Questo approccio progettuale, site-specific, non preclude però la possibilità di trovare nel progetto degli elementi potenzialmente applicabili in altre aree e in altre metropoli. Anzi, gli elementi essenziali del progetto vogliono essere delle linee guida per rigenerare a livello urbano in altri possibili luoghi e scenari.

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is an important source of food for people worldwide. In the current study, we studied its pollination biology with special reference to floral visitors along with their visitation rate, frequency and pollen load during 2012 and 2013. We also explored the effect of floral visitors on the capsule weight, seed weight, seed numbers and seed germination. Results revealed three bees, two wasps, five flies, one moth and three butterfly species on the flowers of chickpea. Apis dorsata, A. florea, Amegilla sp. and Eristalinus aeneus were the major species with 434-474, 223-311, 69-74 and 81-136 individuals, respectively in both years. Floral visitors differed significantly in term of visitation frequency with A. florea as the most frequent visitor (9.13-9.86 visits/flower/5 min) followed by E. aeneus (5.43-5.58 visits/flower/5 min) and A. dorsata (1.72-2.31 visits/ flower/5 min) in both years. Similarly, A. florea had statistically highest visitation rate (16.85-19.99 flowers visited/min) followed by E. aeneus (9.73-10.68 flowers visited/min). A. dorsata had significantly higher pollen load on its body (84629-85,104 pollen grains) followed by A. florea (64940-65,135 pollen grains) and Amegilla sp. (64020-65,120 pollen grains). The open-pollinated flowers had significantly higher capsule weight (0.27 ± 0.01 g), seed weight (0.18 ± 0.01 g), seed numbers (1.67 ± 0.07 seeds) and seed germination (95 ± 1.38%) as compared to flowers deprived of pollinators in cages. The results suggested A. florea, A. dorsata and E. aeneus could be effective pollinators of chickpea. Hence these three species can be properly utilized on commercial scale to increase crop yield.

Recent pollinator declines highlight the importance of evaluating economic risk of agricultural systems heavily dependent on rented honey bees or native pollinators. Our study analyzed variability of native bees and honey bees, and the risks these pose to profitability of Maine’s wild blueberry industry. We used cross-sectional data from organic, low-, medium- and high-input wild blueberry producers in 1993, 1997-1998, 2005-2007, and from 2011-2015 (n=162 fields). Data included native and honey bee densities (count/m2/min) and honey bee stocking densities (hives/ha). Blueberry fruit set, yield, and honey bee hive stocking density models were estimated. Fruit set is impacted about 1.6 times more by native bees than honey bees on a per bee basis. Fruit set significantly explained blueberry yield. Honey bee stocking density in fields predicted honey bee foraging densities. These three models were used in enterprise budgets for all four systems from on-farm surveys of 23 conventional and 12 organic producers (2012-13). These budgets formed the basis of Monte Carlo simulations of production and profit. Stochastic dominance of net farm income (NFI) cumulative distribution functions revealed that if organic yields are high enough (2,345 kg/ha), organic systems are economically preferable to conventional systems. However, if organic yields are lower (724 kg/ha), it is riskier with higher variability of crop yield and NFI. While medium input systems are stochastically dominant with lower NFI variability compared to other conventional systems, the high-input system breaks even with the low-input system if honey bee hive rental prices triple in the future.

Keeping honey bee colonies in isolated areas can cause inbreeding. The inbreeding over a long period is good for the purity of bee subspecies but also has some negative effects including the low performance of colonies. This study was performed on hybrid honey bee colonies placed in an isolated location for about five years to check the effects of inbreeding on them. The bees were able to mate with each other during this period of time without introducing new bee queens or bee packages. Some morphological characteristics and parameters were studied to test the purity of the bees and the presence of any negative effects due to inbreeding. The results showed the presence of variations between studied colonies without any negative effects on bee morphology, hygienic behavior, bee larvae development, brood rearing activity, and food storing activity. The study highlighted the absence of deleterious effects on honey bees due to inbreeding under isolation conditions.

The growing crisis of bee health has shone a spotlight on the problems facing pollinator populations in many parts of the world, the worrying implications for agriculture and ecosystems , and some of the risks of pesticides. Although this attention is important and can open a range of critical vistas, the threats to bees, other pollinators, and the future of pollination are too often framed in narrow ways. The goal of this paper is to provide a systematic way of thinking about the crisis of bee populations by examining the changing dynamics of pollination within industrial agriculture, drawing heavily on transformations in the United States and Canada. We set out a case for understanding pollination as a biophysical barrier to industrial organization and the rise of pollination services as a response that temporarily fixes (or overrides) this barrier, while containing an internal set of contradictions and overrides. We argue that these dialectic relations are continually generating further problems and hope that this lens can help inform critical education, outreach, and movement building with respect to the urgent problems of bee and pollinator health. In particular , we stress the need to connect growing bee-related advocacy with struggles to confront industrial capitalist agriculture. We confirm that this work is original and has not been published elsewhere, nor is it currently under consideration for publication elsewhere.

Hybridization between honey bee subspecies is common and hybrid bees can completely or partial replace the endemic bee subspecies as happened in some countries including Egypt. This study aimed to develop a new method to identify the maternal source of hybrid bees and to compare between sequences. The method (Similarity percentages of nucleotides) depends on using specific numerical system to nucleotides. The method was tested to identify the maternal source of hybrid bees from two honey bee subspecies Apis mellifera scutellata and Apis mellifera capensis based on similarity percentages in mtDNA sequences. The mtDNA sequence of the hybrid bees was more similar to A. m. capensis than A. m. scutellata, suggesting that the maternal source of the hybrid bees belonged to A. m. capensis. Results of the shared gene cluster analysis and similarity percentages based on 13 genes confirmed the similarity trend between the two subspecies and their hybrid. Additionally, specific primers to separate the two subspecies than their hybrid were designed based on the results of similarity percentages and tested using SnapGene. The trend of data analysis used in this study showed high ability to detect the similarities between the two subspecies and their hybrid. Also, this method can be used to identify the maternal source of hybrid bees including those exposed to a long period of hybridization (e.g. hybrid bees of Egypt), to specify the identical parts of the sequence, and to design specific primers to separate subspecies than their hybrids. The method presented in this study is likely to be very important tool to specify the maternal source of breeding stocks during genetic improvement programs of honey bees.