Colony Collapse Disorder has become a global problem for beekeepers and for
the crops which depend on bee polination. Multiple factors are known to
increase the risk of colony colapse, and the ectoparasitic mite Varroa
destructor that parasitizes honey bees is among the main threats to colony
health. Although this mite is unlikely to, by itself, cause the collapse of
hives, it plays an important role as it is a vector for many viral diseases.
Such diseases are among the likely causes for Colony Collapse Disorder.
The effects of V. destructor infestation are disparate in different parts of
the world. Greater morbidity - in the form of colony losses - has been reported
in colonies of European honey bees (EHB) in Europe, Asia and North America.
However, this mite has been present in Brasil for many years and yet there are
no reports of Africanized honey bee (AHB) colonies losses.
Studies carried out in Mexico showed that some resistance behaviors to the
mite - especially grooming and hygienic behavior - appear to be different in
each subspecies. Could those difference in behaviors explain why the AHB are
less susceptible to Colony Collapse Disorder?
In order to answer this question, we propose a mathematical model of the
coexistence dynamics of these two species, the bee and the mite, to analyze the
role of resistance behaviors in the overall health of the colony, and, as a
consequence, its ability to face epidemiological challenges
