Commercial beekeepers need healthy, productive honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) colonies, even when the landscape lacks adequate pollen forage to sustain the colonies. As a result, many commercial beekeepers spend significant money and labor on the use of pollen substitutes in their colonies. However, there is little consensus in the literature about the benefits and drawbacks of pollen substitute use on honey bee colony health. In order to understand this critically, it is important to know first how honey bees distribute pollen substitute patties throughout their colonies. We traced the fate of three commercially available pollen substitute patties (MegaBee, UltraBee, AP23) dyed with a nontoxic food coloring (Brilliant Blue FCF) and undyed as negative controls, a dyed positive control (fondant), and a dyed consumption control (Crayola Model Magic Clay) in 44 honey bee colonies. Using spectrophotometry and visual inspection, we analyzed adult bee guts, larval guts, bee bread stores and colony debris underneath the hive for presence of the dye. Our data suggest that (1) a proportion of adult bees ingest the patty, (2) adult bees likely do not feed patty directly to larvae, (3) adult bees do not store patty like bee bread, and (4) only a very small proportion of patty is lost as debris. Collectively our data suggest that honey bee colonies use pollen substitute patties. However, patties likely do not replace the function of natural pollen entirely in terms of larval provisioning and long-term storage as bee bread.

Western honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) collect pollen from flowers as their source of protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals. Beekeepers feed pollen substitutes to their honey bee colonies to mitigate a lack of natural pollen resources in the environment. Despite their widespread use, it is unclear if pollen substitutes are beneficial to colony health and productivity. Herein, we review the literature regarding pollen substitute efficacy in four major categories: (1) consumption/palatability of pollen substitutes, (2) colony productivity, (3) pest and disease response, and (4) physiological response. Collectively, the literature shows a mix of positive, neutral, and negative impacts of pollen substitutes on honey bee colony health. Additionally, we recommend areas for improvement in pollen substitute research. We hope this review will lead to more research on pollen substitutes given nutrition is a key factor impacting the health of managed honey bees globally.

Western honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) need good nutrition to combat multiple stressors. Beekeepers often feed artificial protein diets (i.e. pollen substitutes) when their colonies lack natural pollen resources. However, it is unclear whether pollen substitutes improve honey bee colony strength and health during pollen dearths and when no pollen stores are available, as can occur during late fall and winter. We fed 56 managed honey bee colonies one of two commercially available pollen substitutes (AP23® and MegaBee®) or no diet (control) over the late fall and winter in north‐central Florida under a simulated pollen dearth and when the colonies lacked pollen stores. We determined the change in adult bee mass and the final brood mass of each colony throughout the feeding period. On average, colonies in each of the three treatment groups experienced a loss in total adult bee mass during the feeding period, which is typical of colonies during winter. Nevertheless, colonies that received AP23 lost significantly less adult bee mass than did control colonies, with colonies that received MegaBee having a loss in adult bee mass intermediate to those of the other two groups. The AP23 and MegaBee colonies had significantly greater brood mass than did control colonies. When accounting for total change in colony biomass (adult bee mass + brood mass), the AP23 group lost significantly less mass than did control colonies, with the MegaBee colonies having a mass loss intermediate to those of the other two groups. Colonies consumed significantly more AP23 than they consumed MegaBee. Collectively, our data suggest that it may be beneficial for beekeepers in warm climates to feed pollen substitutes to stressed honey bee colonies over winter to lessen the loss in total colony biomass.

Did you know there are over 320 species of bees in Florida and over 4,000 in the United States? Wild bees vary widely in behavior, color, size, and shape. Written by James R. Weaver, Shiala M. Naranjo, Emily Noordyke, and Rachel E. Mallinger and published by the UF/IFAS Entomology and Nematology Department, Bees of Florida is a two-page pdf guide to some common bee groups and species you may encounter in Florida. https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in1285

Many beekeepers feed their western honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies artificial pollen substitutes to provide colonies with adequate nutrition during times of limited pollen quantity or quality. We provided caged worker bees commercially available pollen substitutes (AP23, MegaBee, UltraBee) and wildflower pollen in a choice‐test to determine their relative attraction to/preference for the diets. We measured diet consumption by honey bees and observed honey bee behaviour to evaluate bee preferences for certain diets. The bees interacted with and consumed more wildflower pollen than they did any of the commercially available pollen substitutes. Our data suggest that bees have a strong preference for wildflower pollen over commercially available pollen substitutes.