Search Results (150)

Over the past 20 years, honey bee colony declines have been driven by multiple factors, notably diseases and parasites. The parasitic mite Varroa destructor, which weakens the bees’ immune systems, has been particularly harmful. While various synthetic acaricides are used, the chemicals may accumulate in the beeswax, endangering colony health and allowing Varroa populations to develop resistance to these acaricides. These problems have prompted interest in organic alternatives like thymol and oxalic acid. In this study, colony health was assessed through the proteins-to-phenolics spectral ratio in honey and beeswax, determined by fluorescence spectroscopy, as a ratiometric indicator of infection level in treated hives. Over two months, hives were treated with either oxalic acid, thymol, or remained untreated as controls. Neither treatment significantly affected the proteins-to-phenolics ratios in honey, ranging from 0.30 to 0.83, or in beeswax, ranging from 1.40 to 1.83, suggesting that the incorporation of these vital constituents remains stable despite acaricide application. While thymol demonstrates potential adverse effects on bee health, careful management of treatment concentrations is essential to ensure both the efficacy of Varroa control and the preservation of honey quality. These findings provide valuable insights for beekeepers regarding the safe application of organic acaricides. Full article

Beekeeping is a profitable and mind-relaxing practice; however, monitoring beehives poses significant challenges, such as consuming time and potentially disturbing hive equilibrium, which may lead to colony collapse. Developing precision beekeeping (PB) systems is crucial to assist beekeepers in decision-making, automate redundant hive maintenance, and enhance the security and comfort of bee life. This review systematically explores research on PB systems, based on a keyword-driven search of Scopus and Web of Science databases, yielding 46 relevant publications. The analysis highlights a notable increase in research activity in the field since 2016. The integration of advanced technologies, including machine learning, cloud computing, IoT, and scenario-based communication methods, has proven instrumental in predicting hive states such as queen status, enemy attacks, readiness for harvest, swarming events, and population decline. Commonly measured parameters include hive weight, temperature, and relative humidity, with various sensors employed to ensure precision while minimizing bee disturbance. Additionally, bee traffic monitoring has emerged as a critical approach to assessing hive health. Most studies focus on honeybees rather than stingless bees and, in the context of enemy identification, Varroa destructor is the primary target. This review underscores the potential of novel technologies to revolutionize apiculture and enhance hive management practices. Full article

Honeybee (Apis mellifera) colony density is frequently assumed to influence the level of Nosema ceranae infestation in managed colonies. In Slovakia, winter bottom beehive debris (dead worker bees) is routinely collected between January and February, providing a unique and uniform material for evaluating the degree of Nosema infestation prior to the breeding season. This study assesses the suitability of winter hive debris for estimating the infestation intensity of Nosema species and examines whether regional differences in beekeeping density are associated with variation in Nosema ceranae infestation levels. A total of 6221 samples from 43 Slovak districts collected between 2022 and 2024 were examined using microscopy confirmed by duplex PCR. Nosema ceranae was detected in 74.3% of samples, while Nosema apis was not detected. Although higher colony densities tended to be associated with increased proportions of moderately and strongly infested colonies, statistical modelling confirmed a statistically significant but modest positive association between colony density and infestation intensity. These results indicate that winter bottom beehive debris is a valuable material for assessing Nosema infestation pressure at the colony and regional levels, while also highlighting the contribution of additional environmental and management factors. Full article

Agricultural intensification and the widespread use of pesticides have exerted long-term pressures on honey bees, negatively affecting their survival, abundance, and immunity. Understanding the perceptions of beekeepers and farmers is essential to identify collaborative actions and assess whether existing regulations provide adequate protection for bee health. Laws and regulations play a crucial role in managing apicultural health risks; however, their effectiveness depends on how well they align with ecological realities and policy objectives. This study investigates whether Chile’s regulatory frameworks provide sufficient protection for honey bees by identifying key gaps and opportunities, particularly regarding pesticide use in agriculture. A mixed-methods analysis was applied to a sample of beekeepers from southern Chile—considering variables such as gender, education level, and regulatory awareness—and complemented with a review of legal documents and semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders. Findings show that although Law No. 21,489 represents an important step toward formalizing beekeeping and reducing pesticide-related risks, its scope remains limited by weak enforcement capacity, scarce institutional resources, and insufficient regulation of systemic pesticides. Strengthening environmental governance and updating the regulatory framework through greater inter-institutional coordination, beekeeper participation, and effective control mechanisms are essential to reconcile agricultural production with pollinator conservation and ecosystem sustainability. Full article

Recent high annual losses of honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies, averaging 40% in the United States from 2008 to 2025, are concerning for beekeepers, growers, policy makers, and scientists. Viruses, the most abundant group of honey bee pathogens, impact honey bee fitness and contribute to colony losses. Several studies have utilized next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies to discover new honey beeinfecting viruses and expand our understanding of the honey bee virome. Herein, we examined the viromes of honey bees obtained from longitudinally monitored, commercially managed colonies that experienced population decline (average ~44%) during the 2022–2023 beekeeping season. We hypothesized new viruses or virus genome variants may be associated with these declines. To test this hypothesis, we sequenced RNA obtained from virus-augmented honey bee samples from representative colonies managed by four beekeeping operations in California. We discovered three undescribed partitivirus-like sequences that were prevalent and abundant in all beekeeping operations, a new Lake Sinai virus, and a sequence variant of acute bee paralysis virus. In addition, we re-sequenced the genomes of 16 previously characterized bee and/or Varroa destructor mite infecting viruses and two previously described, but not well-characterized, partitivirus-like sequences (i.e., Apis mellifera associated partiti-like virus 1 and Hubeipartiti-like virus 34). Virus abundance was greater in libraries representing colonies that died during the monitoring period. Full article

Climate change exerts an increasing impact on the health and resilience of honey bees through a combination of rising temperatures, altered precipitation patterns, and intensified parasitic and infectious pressure. The present study aims to analyze climatic conditions in Bulgaria for the period 2021–2024 and to evaluate the results of a national survey conducted among beekeepers, focusing on winter colony losses during the 2023/2024 season and the feeding strategies applied. The survey was carried out in 2024 among 70 beekeepers from 20 administrative regions of the country, managing a total of 8935 bee colonies. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and stratified by region. The reported average winter mortality was 2.22% (198 colonies), with pronounced territorial variability. The most frequently indicated self-reported probable cause of losses was bee diseases, with varroosis identified as the dominant factor. Analysis of management practices revealed widespread application of combined feeding schemes based on plant-derived supplementary feeds, primarily administered in spring (March–April) and late summer (August–September). The obtained results differ from published national data for 2024, according to which total colony losses reached 16.3%, while losses associated with mortality or severe demographic collapse accounted for 11.6%. Despite the limitations inherent to the survey-based approach and self-reported data, the results suggest that integrated management combining parasite control with targeted nutritional support through the use of Bulgarian herbal supplementary feeds may coincide with the winter survival patterns reported within the surveyed sample. Full article

The accumulation of cocoons within brood cells of old combs is a key factor causing a series of negative impacts on bee colonies. Previous studies did not sufficiently address this dynamic nature as the core microenvironment for preimaginal bee development. During this accumulation, the enrichment of potentially harmful microorganisms and chemical substances may pose a latent threat to colony health. This study combined microbiome and metabolomics analyses to systematically investigate the potential colony health risks posed by multi-generational accumulation of cocoons in Apis mellifera combs. The results demonstrated that with the growing number of brood rearing generations, the microbial diversity within the cocoons underwent significant shifts. For the bacterial community within multiple-generation cocoons, the Simpson index exhibited a significant increase, whereas indices including Sobs, Ace, and Chao showed significant decreases (p < 0.05). In the fungal community, the Shannon and Pielou_e indices significantly increased, while the Simpson and Faith_pd indices significantly declined (p < 0.05). Potential pathogens such as Melissococcus and the mycotoxin-producing fungus Wallemia became significantly enriched, reaching alarming relative abundances of 42.70% and 13.52%, respectively, in the multiple-generation cocoons. Metabolomic analysis further revealed the enrichment of 685 differential metabolites, including persistent exogenous pesticides such as cyanazine and pymetrozine, etc. Correlation analysis uncovered a significant positive relationship (r > 0.8) between these pesticide residues and pathogen abundance, indicating interactions between pollutants and pathogens that may exacerbate risks. This study reveals the aggravation of microecological imbalance and chemical pollution load within the cocoons of old combs and therefore provides strong scientific support for risk assessment of comb age in colony health management and offers practical guidance for the sustainable development of beekeeping. Full article

Poor nutrition is a known contributing factor to ongoing high rates of honey bee colony mortality. Beekeepers invest significant resources to provide supplemental feeds to their colonies, but currently available diets are nutritionally incomplete. To test whether commercially managed colonies fed a manufactured, nutritionally complete Pollen-Replacing Feed (PRF-1) would exhibit improved colony health outcomes compared to beekeeper-selected Commercial Standard Feeds, we tracked colony health metrics from fall through almond pollination and the subsequent spring in a large-scale, multi-year field trial. By January (in almonds), PRF-1-fed colonies had 1.19 more frames of bees (p < 0.001) and 18.7% more colonies meeting the 8-frame minimum size requirement for high-revenue pollination contracts. After almond pollination (March), PRF-1-fed colonies exhibited a 13.8% increase in survival (p = 0.002), 2.57 more frames of bees (p = 0.006), and 0.79 more frames of brood (p = 0.003). PRF-1-fed colonies also exhibited superior spring build-up, adding 1.22 more frames of bees between January and March (p = 0.03). Economically, a hypothetical 100-colony operation fed PRF-1 garnered an additional $12,065.81 in gross revenue in the first year. Nutritional benefits are projected to compound, leading to exponentially increased revenue over subsequent years. Persistent improvements in colony health demonstrate that providing a nutritionally complete pollen-replacing feed in fall and winter has a long-lasting, positive impact on colony health and commercial viability. Full article

This study provides an updated overview of Anthophila (wild bees and honey bees) diversity and conservation status in Algeria, explicitly distinguishing between the managed honey bee (Apis mellifera) and native wild Anthophila species. Using a systematic PRISMA-based literature analysis, more than 179 bee species have been documented across Mediterranean and semi-arid ecosystems, confirming their irreplaceable contribution to ecosystem resilience and crop pollination and beekeeping systems. The majority of Algeria’s Anthophila diversity is represented by endemic and native wild bees that sustain natural ecosystems. However, they are under growing human-caused (anthropogenic) pressures in the Anthropocene, including pressure from habitat loss and fragmentation, agricultural intensification, widespread pesticide use, and climate change. In addition, pathogenic threats such as Varroa destructor, Nosema, and associated viruses are well documented in honey bees, while evidence for their presence and impact in wild bees in Algeria remains very limited. These stressors not only weaken specialist species but also accelerate biotic homogenization dominated by A. mellifera. Recent genomic research on native honey bee populations has revealed adaptive signatures linked to immunity and social behavior, offering new opportunities for innovative conservation strategies based on molecular and genetic tools. Such insights highlight the value of preserving local strains, which may hold key traits for resilience under changing environmental conditions. To safeguard Anthophila biodiversity, this study underscores the urgent need for Algeria to implement proven conservation strategies, including habitat restoration initiatives and Anthophila-friendly farming approaches, which are common internationally but remain largely unaddressed at the national scale. By integrating cutting-edge genetic research, ecological restoration, and sustainable innovation, Algeria, with its diverse habitats and largely unexplored Anthophila fauna, holds considerable potential for advancing biodiversity conservation strategies that also support food security. However, this potential can only be realized through further in-depth research and comprehensive species inventories. Full article

Beekeeping is a widespread economic activity in rural Tanzania, supporting over 2 million livelihoods. The country’s forests and woodlands, covering approximately 55% of its land area, provide habitat for an estimated 9.2 million honeybee colonies. This positions Tanzania as the second-largest honey producer in Africa and tenth globally. Absence of current information and effective policies hinders exploitation of the industry’s potential. This review presents scientific insights into Tanzania’s beekeeping sector, focusing on honeybee species, bee products, management practices, and conservation. Among three documented subspecies of Apis mellifera (Linnaeus, 1758), A. m. scutellata is the most widespread and commonly managed by indigenous beekeepers. Tanzania annually produces over 31,000 tonnes of honey and 1800 tonnes of beeswax, generating approximately USD 77.5 million and contributing about 1% to national GDP. The industry supports livelihoods, food security, and biodiversity conservation. Its sustained growth requires effective legal and administrative support, expanded scientific research, enhanced innovation, coordinated partnerships, and integrated nationwide initiatives. Full article

Safe overwintering is a challenging issue in rearing management that is inevitably faced by beekeepers in high-latitude regions. Under the combined influence of multiple factors, the overwintering loss rate of Western honey bees has risen continuously, and investigating the molecular mechanisms related to safe overwintering has become key. The Hunchun bee, an Apis mellifera ecotype in Jilin Province, China, exhibits strong overwintering ability during an overwintering period of more than five months. To investigate the molecular mechanisms of its cold resistance, we conducted a comparative transcriptomic analysis between the summer breeding period (July) and different overwintering intervals (November, December, January, and February), and then systematically identified key genes and signaling pathways related to cold resistance. The results showed that the highest number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) was found between December and July. Compared with July, the upregulated genes in Hunchun bee in December were significantly enriched in several pathways, such as ion transport and neuroactive ligand–receptor interactions, and the downregulated genes were significantly enriched in pathways related to fatty acid metabolism, glutathione metabolism, and the peroxisome. Notably, a total of 378 shared DEGs were obtained from the four comparison groups, and several candidate cold-resistant gene families, such as AFPs, HSPs, C₂H₂-ZFPs, STKs, and LRRCs, were identified among the shared DEGs of the winter season. Additionally, 749 shared DEGs related to protein modification and metabolic process regulation were identified between the four successive overwintering intervals. Four shared genes, including sensory neuron membrane protein 1 (SNMP1), were revealed by pairwise comparison of the four intervals. The above results collectively indicate that the Hunchun bee attenuates winter-induced stress responses during the overwintering process by maintaining osmotic pressure balance, reducing fatty acid metabolism, increasing antioxidant capacity, and synthesizing cold-resistant macromolecular proteins. It was also found that chemical signal perception may serve a role in maintaining the stability of the overwintering bee colony. The key genes and pathways related to cold resistance identified in this study not only provide a basis for explaining the overwintering molecular mechanism for Apis mellifera of Hunchun bee but also offer key data to improve overwintering management strategies for Western honey bees. Full article

The application of remote sensing technology for pose estimation in beekeeping has the potential to transform colony management, improve bee health and mitigate the decline in bee populations. This paper presents a novel bee pose estimation method that integrates the accuracy and efficiency of two existing deep learning models: a variant of the classic VGG-19 network architecture for feature extraction and an adaptation of OpenPose for part detection and assembly. The proposed approach, OpenBeePose, is compared with state-of-the-art methods, including YOLO11 and the original OpenPose. The dataset used consists of 400 high-resolution images of the hive ramp (1080 × 1920 pixels) taken during daylight hours from eight different hives, totaling more than 3600 bee samples. Each bee is annotated in the YOLO format with two key points labeled: the stinger and the head. The obtained results show that OpenBeePose achieves a high level of accuracy, similar to those of other methods, with a success rate exceeding 99%. However, the most substantial advantage is its computational efficiency, which makes it the fastest method among those compared for 540 × 960 images, and it is almost twice as fast as OpenPose. Full article

Honeybee products (HBPs), including honey, bee pollen, bee bread, royal jelly, propolis, beeswax, and bee brood, are increasingly used in food, nutraceutical, and cosmetic contexts. Because of their natural origin, HBPs can provoke allergic reactions ranging from localised dermatitis to life-threatening, systemic anaphylaxis. As the use of bee products for health purposes grows in apitherapy (a branch of alternative medicine), raising public awareness of their potential risks is essential. This narrative review synthesises the clinical manifestations of HBP allergy, culprit allergens present in each product, immunological mechanisms, diagnostic approaches, at-risk populations, and knowledge gaps. The analysis of the available literature suggests that, although relatively rarely, HPB may trigger allergic reactions, including anaphylactic shock. The sensitisation mechanism may be associated with both primary sensitisation and cross-reactivity and can be classified into type I (IgE-mediated) and type IV (T-cell-mediated). However, bee bread appears less allergenic than other HBPs, potentially due to lactic fermentation that can degrade allergenic proteins. Severe reactions following intake of bee bread have not been reported to date. Management of HBP allergic reactions centres on avoiding the products, educating about the risks, and providing more precise product labelling, specifying the allergen content. Individuals with atopy and beekeepers are at heightened risk of developing anaphylaxis; therefore, they should be particularly aware of the potential dangerous consequences of HPB use. Further research is needed to clarify the mechanisms of HBP allergies and improve safety for all users. Full article

The sustainability of apiculture within Mediterranean forest ecosystems is contingent upon the extent and health of melliferous tree habitats. This study outlines a five-year initiative (2020–2024) aimed at mapping and monitoring four principal honey-producing tree species—pine (Pinus halepensis and Pinus nigra), Greek fir (Abies cephalonica), oak (Quercus ithaburensis subsp. macrolepis), and chestnut (Castanea sativa)—across Evia, Greece. This is achieved through the utilization of high-resolution Sentinel-2 satellite imagery in conjunction with a hierarchical deep learning framework. Distinct from prior vegetation mapping endeavors, this research introduces an innovative application of a hierarchical framework for species-level semantic segmentation of apicultural flora, employing a U-Net convolutional neural network to capture fine-scale spatial and temporal dynamics. The proposed framework first stratifies forests into broadleaf and coniferous types using Copernicus DLT data, and subsequently applies two specialized U-Net models trained on Sentinel-2 NDVI time series and DEM-derived topographic variables to (i) discriminate pine from fir within coniferous forests and (ii) distinguish oak from chestnut within broadleaf stands. This hierarchical decomposition reduces spectral confusion among structurally similar species and enables fine-scale semantic segmentation of apicultural flora. Our hierarchical framework achieves 92.1% overall accuracy, significantly outperforming traditional multiclass approaches (89.5%) and classical ML methods (76.9%). The results demonstrate the framework’s efficacy in accurately delineating species distributions, quantifying the ecological and economic impacts of the catastrophic 2021 forest fires, and projecting long-term habitat recovery trajectories. The integration of a novel hierarchical approach with Deep Learning-driven monitoring of climate- and disturbance-driven changes in honey-producing habitats marks a significant step towards more effective assessment and management of four major beekeeping tree species. These findings highlight the significance of such methodologies in guiding conservation, restoration, and adaptive management strategies, ultimately supporting resilient apiculture and safeguarding ecosystem services in fire-prone Mediterranean landscapes. Full article