A one year study was conducted to evaluate the population growth of three kinds of honey bee colo... more A one year study was conducted to evaluate the population growth of three kinds of honey bee colonies and Varroa destructor mites in Mexico, and to estimate the relative contributions of three resistance mechanisms of the bees: hygienic behavior, grooming behavior, and reproductive ability of the parasite. Very significant changes over the year were observed in the number of mated
The 2008 ESA Annual Meeting, November 16-19, 2008, 2008
The parasitic mite Varroa destructor is a significant pest of the honey bee, Apis mellifera, bein... more The parasitic mite Varroa destructor is a significant pest of the honey bee, Apis mellifera, being the major cause of colony death in the US. To keep colonies alive, beekeepers often treat all of their colonies once or twice a year, irrespective of mite level. The aim of my research is ...
Honey bees, as social insects, rely on collective behavioral defenses that produce a colony-level... more Honey bees, as social insects, rely on collective behavioral defenses that produce a colony-level immune phenotype, or social immunity, which in turn impacts the immune response of individuals. One behavioral defense is the collection and deposition of antimicrobial plant resins, or propolis, in the nest. We tested the effect of a naturally constructed propolis envelope within standard beekeeping equipment on the pathogen and parasite load of large field colonies, and on immune system activity, virus and storage protein levels of individual bees over the course of a year. The main effect of the propolis envelope was a decreased and more uniform baseline expression of immune genes in bees during summer and autumn months each year, compared with the immune activity in bees with no propolis envelope in the colony. The most important function of the propolis envelope may be to modulate costly immune system activity. As no differences were found in levels of bacteria, pathogens and paras...
We previously characterized and quantified the influence of land use on survival and productivity... more We previously characterized and quantified the influence of land use on survival and productivity of colonies positioned in six apiaries and found that colonies in apiaries surrounded by more land in uncultivated forage experienced greater annual survival, and generally more honey production. Here, detailed metrics of honey bee health were assessed over three years in colonies positioned in the same six apiaries. The colonies were located in North Dakota during the summer months and were transported to California for almond pollination every winter. Our aim was to identify relationships among measures of colony and individual bee health that impacted and predicted overwintering survival of colonies. We tested the hypothesis that colonies in apiaries surrounded by more favorable land use conditions would experience improved health. We modeled colony and individual bee health indices at a critical time point (autumn, prior to overwintering) and related them to eventual spring survival for California almond pollination. Colony measures that predicted overwintering apiary survival included the amount of pollen collected, brood production, and Varroa destructor mite levels. At the individual bee level, expression of vitellogenin, defensin1, and lysozyme2 were important markers of overwinter survival. This study is a novel first step toward identifying pertinent physiological responses in honey bees that result from their positioning near varying landscape features in intensive agricultural environments.
J. Emil. Entomol. 88(5): 1211-I215 (1995) ABSTRACT Two natural product treatments were evaluated ... more J. Emil. Entomol. 88(5): 1211-I215 (1995) ABSTRACT Two natural product treatments were evaluated in field trials as control agents for the parasitic mite, VaIToajacobsoni (Oudemans), in colonies of the honey bee, Apis mel-lifem L. Eight colonies were treated with a blend of thymol, ...
Annals of the Entomological Society of America, Feb 28, 1993
Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 86(2): 165-172 (1993) ABSTRACT Worker honey bees, Apis mellifera L., in qu... more Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 86(2): 165-172 (1993) ABSTRACT Worker honey bees, Apis mellifera L., in queenless colonies constructed emergency queen cells on the periphery of the brood area on a comb when ambient temperatures were high, and in the center of the comb when ...
Methods for rearing native bumblebee, Bombus impatiens, in confinement. The methods can be used t... more Methods for rearing native bumblebee, Bombus impatiens, in confinement. The methods can be used to rear bumblebee colonies for backyard garden pollination, for commercial hot-house pollination of tomatoes, for cranberry and blueberry growers, and to help with native ...
A one year study was conducted to evaluate the population growth of three kinds of honey bee colo... more A one year study was conducted to evaluate the population growth of three kinds of honey bee colonies and Varroa destructor mites in Mexico, and to estimate the relative contributions of three resistance mechanisms of the bees: hygienic behavior, grooming behavior, and reproductive ability of the parasite. Very significant changes over the year were observed in the number of mated
The 2008 ESA Annual Meeting, November 16-19, 2008, 2008
The parasitic mite Varroa destructor is a significant pest of the honey bee, Apis mellifera, bein... more The parasitic mite Varroa destructor is a significant pest of the honey bee, Apis mellifera, being the major cause of colony death in the US. To keep colonies alive, beekeepers often treat all of their colonies once or twice a year, irrespective of mite level. The aim of my research is ...
Honey bees, as social insects, rely on collective behavioral defenses that produce a colony-level... more Honey bees, as social insects, rely on collective behavioral defenses that produce a colony-level immune phenotype, or social immunity, which in turn impacts the immune response of individuals. One behavioral defense is the collection and deposition of antimicrobial plant resins, or propolis, in the nest. We tested the effect of a naturally constructed propolis envelope within standard beekeeping equipment on the pathogen and parasite load of large field colonies, and on immune system activity, virus and storage protein levels of individual bees over the course of a year. The main effect of the propolis envelope was a decreased and more uniform baseline expression of immune genes in bees during summer and autumn months each year, compared with the immune activity in bees with no propolis envelope in the colony. The most important function of the propolis envelope may be to modulate costly immune system activity. As no differences were found in levels of bacteria, pathogens and paras...
We previously characterized and quantified the influence of land use on survival and productivity... more We previously characterized and quantified the influence of land use on survival and productivity of colonies positioned in six apiaries and found that colonies in apiaries surrounded by more land in uncultivated forage experienced greater annual survival, and generally more honey production. Here, detailed metrics of honey bee health were assessed over three years in colonies positioned in the same six apiaries. The colonies were located in North Dakota during the summer months and were transported to California for almond pollination every winter. Our aim was to identify relationships among measures of colony and individual bee health that impacted and predicted overwintering survival of colonies. We tested the hypothesis that colonies in apiaries surrounded by more favorable land use conditions would experience improved health. We modeled colony and individual bee health indices at a critical time point (autumn, prior to overwintering) and related them to eventual spring survival for California almond pollination. Colony measures that predicted overwintering apiary survival included the amount of pollen collected, brood production, and Varroa destructor mite levels. At the individual bee level, expression of vitellogenin, defensin1, and lysozyme2 were important markers of overwinter survival. This study is a novel first step toward identifying pertinent physiological responses in honey bees that result from their positioning near varying landscape features in intensive agricultural environments.
J. Emil. Entomol. 88(5): 1211-I215 (1995) ABSTRACT Two natural product treatments were evaluated ... more J. Emil. Entomol. 88(5): 1211-I215 (1995) ABSTRACT Two natural product treatments were evaluated in field trials as control agents for the parasitic mite, VaIToajacobsoni (Oudemans), in colonies of the honey bee, Apis mel-lifem L. Eight colonies were treated with a blend of thymol, ...
Annals of the Entomological Society of America, Feb 28, 1993
Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 86(2): 165-172 (1993) ABSTRACT Worker honey bees, Apis mellifera L., in qu... more Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 86(2): 165-172 (1993) ABSTRACT Worker honey bees, Apis mellifera L., in queenless colonies constructed emergency queen cells on the periphery of the brood area on a comb when ambient temperatures were high, and in the center of the comb when ...
Methods for rearing native bumblebee, Bombus impatiens, in confinement. The methods can be used t... more Methods for rearing native bumblebee, Bombus impatiens, in confinement. The methods can be used to rear bumblebee colonies for backyard garden pollination, for commercial hot-house pollination of tomatoes, for cranberry and blueberry growers, and to help with native ...
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