Are honey bees (apis mellifera L.) native to the British Isles?

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Honey bee colony losses

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Observations on two commercial flower mixtures as food sources for beneficial insects in the UK

Observations were made in 1994 and 1995 in Hertfordshire of the flowering phenology and attractiveness to beneficial insects of two commercial mixtures of flowering plants intended for set-aside land. These were the Tübingen Mixture from Germany and Ascot Linde SN from the Netherlands. The mixtures were visited by 14 species of Hymenoptera, 14 species of syrphid Diptera and six species of Lepidoptera. Although the mixtures contained 12 and five plant species respectively, Phacelia tanacetifolia was the dominant species to establish, flower and attract insects in both mixtures. The other plants contributed little to flower density or insect diversity. These mixtures are therefore not suitable for UK needs using the present proportions of plant specie

The role of deformed wing virus in the initial collapse of varroa infested honey bee colonies in the UK.

The mite Varroa destructor has been associated with the collapse of millions of Apis mellifera honey bee colonies world-wide. During the past decade, a large body of research has revealed various interactions between varroa, the honey bee and various viral pathogens. One pathogen in particular, deformed wing virus (DWV), has emerged as the key pathogen involved in colony collapse. As varroa has permanently changed the viral landscape in which honey bees exist, we present a large body of data on the effects of DWV during the initial phase of varroa infestation in the UK during 1998. This provides baseline data for further comparative studies. We carried out DWV transmission studies, and observed the effects of DWV on bee longevity. As the ELISA technique used in these studies had a detection limit of ~107 viral particles per bee, only high viral (overt) titres were detected. During the initial phase of varroa establishment, DWV was detected in 0.6 % of non-infested sealed brood, but in 89 % of sealed brood invaded by varroa. Once DWV was introduced into the bee’s haemolymph via mite feeding on either pupae or adults, an overt virus infection was rapidly produced in 3-4 days. In sealed brood the presence of varroa was fatal for 21 % of the brood, caused wing deformity in some emerging adults and significantly reduced longevity as an adult. However, adult bees that became infected after they had emerged, did not develop wing deformity nor show any reduced longevity, but acted as reservoirs of DWV infection

Honey bee genotypes and the environment

Although knowledge about honey bee geographic and genetic diversity has increased tremendously in recent decades (Meixner et al., 2013), the adaptation of honey bees to their local environment has not been well studied. The current demand for high economic performance of bee colonies with desirable behavioural characteristics contributes to changing the natural diversity via mass importations and an increasing practice of queen trade and colony movement. At the same time, there is also a growing movement in opposition to this trend, aimed at conserving the natural heritage of local populations, with on-going projects in several countries (Strange et al., 2008; Dall’Olio et al., 2008, De la Rúa et al., 2009)

The dose makes the poison: have “field realistic” rates of exposure of bees to neonicotinoid insecticides been overestimated in laboratory studies?

Recent laboratory based studies have demonstrated adverse sub-lethal effects of neonicotinoid insecticides on honey bees and bumble bees, and these studies have been influential in leading to a European Union moratorium on the use of three neonicotinoids, clothianidin, imidacloprid, and thiamethoxam on “bee attractive” crops. Yet so far, these same effects have not been observed in field studies. Here we review the three key dosage factors (concentration, duration and choice) relevant to field conditions, and conclude that these have probably been over estimated in many laboratory based studies