<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
A study was conducted to document nest intruders in newly divided colonies of stingless bees. The nature of the damage, the sequence of activities after colony division, and task allocation in the colony were studied. Three insect invaders - solitary resin bees (<italic>Megachile disjuncta</italic>, <italic>M. cephalotes</italic>), ants (<italic>Oecophylla smaragdina</italic> and <italic>Camponotus</italic> sp.) and spiders belonging to the family Salticidae and Lycosidae invaded the colonies during the earlier stages of division. The mean number of resin bees and ant invasions was significantly higher during the first week after division. Spiders invaded the hives and formed webs during the second week after division, resin and honey resources are robbed by resin bees and ants. Nest entrance closure was observed at 4.37±0.74 days after colony division guard bee activity from 6.13±1.24 days and foraging activity from 10.63±1.06 days after division. Observations on the task allocation framework after colony division indicated that 69% of bees were involved in hive entrance repair, 18% in colony architecture development, and 13% in tending to newly emerged bees from brood cells. The bees built a complex nest entrance, guarded activity and demonstrated nest closure behaviour in order to protect the nest against intruders. The results of the study are of prime importance for beekeepers to learn how to watch for hive intruders during colony division and to understand the adaptive defence mechanism to protect colonies.
</abstract>

Adaptive Defence Strategies of the Stingless Bee, <italic>Tetragonula Iridipennis</italic> Smith. Against Nest Intruders in a Newly Divided Colony

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
Pollen contains vegetative and generative cells that influence the seed set. Accurate pollen assessments help understand the breeding biology of oilseed rape. In order to evaluate the number of pollen grains in a large number of samples, an effective method should be designed. A new method was established to evaluate the pollen counts of five oilseed rape cultivars. This method mainly relies on 5% sucrose + 0.1% agar solution to suspend the pollen and uses a standard curve corresponding to the absorbance and the number of pollen grains to estimate the number of pollen grains. The linear fit formula of this standard curve was precision, and the R2 value between the pollen count and absorbance reached 0.998. Furthermore, the variation in the pollen counts at three flowering stages and on two kinds of stamens was assessed. The pollen count per flower varied significantly among oilseed rape cultivars and flowering stages (GLM: p&lt;0.001). Moreover, the number of pollen grains on long-stamen anthers was significantly higher than that on short-stamen anthers (GLM: p&lt;0.001). In conclusion, we established a rapid, accurate method for quantifying pollen grains based on absorbance determined in a liquid suspension by light spectroscopy, which is a feasible method. In addition, the number of pollen grains under different physiological conditions also provides basic data for oilseed rape breeding.
</abstract>

Key Laboratory for Insect-Pollinator Biology of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs

Pollen Count Dynamics in Rapeseed Stamens in Early Spring

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
Pesticides are one of the elements that lead to the decline in honeybee populations. Honey bee while foraging collect nectar and pollen from various crops, can be exposed to pesticide residues, which may be transported into their colonies and consumed by the larvae. The objective of this study was to evaluate acute toxicity of fipronil and lambda-cyhalothrin, two commonly detected pesticides within beehives, on the larvae of <italic>Apis mellifera</italic>. The testes chemicals were given to three-day old larvae. Treatments were administered using a micropipette at the bottom of each chosen comb cell. Each treatment included sixty larvae per dosage and the experiment was repeated three times. Larvae were given only acetone in the control treatment. Fipronil and lambda-cyhalothrin were toxic to the larvae of <italic>A. mellifera</italic> with LD50 values of 0.163 and 0.83 μg/larvae, respectively after seven days of exposure. The maximum mortality of 81.35% was recorded with a dose of 0.38 μg/larvae in Fipronil, whereas in lambda-cyhalothrin, it was 94.23% with a dose of 1.70 μg/larvae.
</abstract>

Department of Forest Resource Management and Conservation

Dr. Y. S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Entomology

Toxicity of Insecticides with Different Modes of Action to <italic>Apis Mellifera</italic> Larvae (Hymenoptera, Apidae)

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
Our study tested the pollination effectiveness of the megachilid bee <italic>Osmia bicornis</italic> L. (syn. <italic>Osmia rufa</italic>) on three apple cultivars (cv.): Lobo, Piros and Champion. The following pollination treatments were compared for each cultivar: insect pollination - caged trees with <italic>Osmia bicornis</italic> (syn. <italic>Osmia rufa</italic>) bees; open pollination - uncaged trees; self-pollination - caged trees without bees. Pollination success was measured based on the percentage of fruit set, the fruit yield per tree (measured as number of fruits and total fruit weight) and the number of seeds per fruit. Generally, there was a higher percentage of initial fruit-set and fruits at harvest on open-pollinated trees than on caged trees without bees, with an intermediate value recorded for caged trees pollinated by <italic>O. bicornis</italic> (syn. <italic>O. rufa</italic>). However, the fruit set on trees pollinated by <italic>O. bicornis</italic> (syn. <italic>O. rufa</italic>) was high and ranged from 49 to 69%, depending on the cultivar. The cv. Lobo trees pollinated by <italic>O. bicornis</italic> (syn. <italic>O. rufa</italic>) and open-pollinated trees produced higher fruit yields than without bees. Furthermore, the number of seeds per fruit was higher. Fruit yield and the number of seeds per fruit were higher for trees pollinated by <italic>O. bicornis</italic> (syn. <italic>O. rufa</italic>) than for caged trees without insects but lower than for open pollination trees of cv. Piros and cv. Lobo.
</abstract>

Effect of Pollination by the <italic>Osmia Bicornis</italic> (syn. <italic>O. rufa</italic>) Bee on Fruit Set, Seed Set and Yield in Three Apple Cultivars

<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
Cold temperatures limit the survival and reproduction of honeybees. Therefore, successful overwintering is crucial for the survival of honeybee colonies and the pollination of flowering plants in the following spring. This study analyzed the gut microbiota of <italic>Apis cerana</italic> from Changbai Mountain during the overwintering period through 16S rDNA high-throughput sequencing. The analysis of microbial community composition showed that <italic>Gilliamella</italic>, <italic>Lactobacillus</italic>, <italic>Bifidobacterium</italic> and <italic>Snodgrassella</italic> were the core genera in the honeybee gut during the overwintering period. Moreover, alpha diversity analysis showed that the community diversity of the gut microbiota peaked in December. Beta diversity and LEfSe analysis showed that community composition was similar in December, January and February and that such beneficial bacteria as <italic>Snodgrassella</italic>, <italic>Acetobacteraceae</italic>, and <italic>Rhizobiales</italic> were differentially abundant during this period. The results of functional prediction analysis indicate that amino acid transport and metabolism, carbohydrate transport and metabolism, and the TCA cycle play an important role in overwintering. These results suggest that the dynamic changes in the gut microbiota of <italic>A. cerana</italic> during winter and mechanisms tolerate cold stress.
</abstract>

Analysis of Diversity and Composition of <italic>Apis Cerana</italic> Gut Microbiome in Overwintering Period

Promoting Pollination and Pollinators in Farming

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Journal of Apicultural Science

 The Journal of Apicultural Science is a scientific, English-language journal that publishes both original research articles and review papers covering all aspects of the life of bees (superfamily Apoidea) and broadly defined apiculture. The main subject areas include:   bee biology  bee genetics  bee breeding  pathology and toxicology  pollination and bee botany  bee products  management, technologies, and economy  solitary bees and bumblebees   Publication options  The Journal of Apicultural Science has been published by the National Institute of Horticultural Research and Apicultural Research Association twice a year in paper and online versions since 2001. The Journal is a continuation of the former scientific periodical "Pszczelnicze Zeszyty Naukowe," issued from 1957 to 2000. Archive issues of Pszczelnicze Zeszyty Naukowe and issues of the Journal of Apicultural Science published since 2001 to 2011 are available at the original Journal's website (www.jas.org.pl). The paper version is available at www.jas.org.pl (subscriptions). After acceptance, articles are given DOI numbers, assigned to successive volumes and issues, and published online by Sciendo (sciendo.com/journal/JAS), which has used the open access model since 2012.  Archiving  Sciendo archives the contents of this journal in Portico - digital long-term preservation service of scholarly books, journals and collections.  Plagiarism Policy  The editorial board is participating in a growing community of Similarity Check System's users in order to ensure that the content published is original and trustworthy. Similarity Check is a medium that allows for comprehensive manuscripts screening, aimed to eliminate plagiarism and provide a high standard and quality peer-review process. 

Journal of Apicultural Science

Volume 67 (2023): Issue 2 (December 2023)

Original Article

Adaptive Defence Strategies of the Stingless Bee, Tetragonula Iridipennis Smith. Against Nest Intruders in a Newly Divided Colony

Pollen Count Dynamics in Rapeseed Stamens in Early Spring

Toxicity of Insecticides with Different Modes of Action to Apis Mellifera Larvae (Hymenoptera, Apidae)

Effect of Pollination by the Osmia Bicornis (syn. O. rufa) Bee on Fruit Set, Seed Set and Yield in Three Apple Cultivars

Analysis of Diversity and Composition of Apis Cerana Gut Microbiome in Overwintering Period

Book review

Promoting Pollination and Pollinators in Farming

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