Biotic and abiotic stresses on honeybee health

Abstract

Honeybees are the most critical pollinators providing key ecosystem services that underpin crop production and sustainable agriculture. Amidst a backdrop of rapid global change, this eusocial insect encounters a succession of stressors during nesting, foraging, and pollination. Ectoparasitic mites, together with vectored viruses, have been recognized as central biotic threats to honeybee health, while the spread of invasive giant hornets and small hive beetles also increasingly threatens colonies worldwide. Cocktails of agrochemicals, including acaricides used for mite treatment, and other pollutants of the environment have been widely documented to affect bee health in various ways. Additionally, expanding urbanization, climate change, and agricultural intensification often result in the destruction or fragmentation of flower‐rich bee habitats. The anthropogenic pressures exerted by beekeeping management practices affect the natural selection and evolution of honeybees, and colony translocations facilitate alien species invasion and disease transmission. In this review, the multiple biotic and abiotic threats and their interactions that potentially undermine bee colony health are discussed, while taking into consideration the sensitivity, large foraging area, dense network among related nestmates, and social behaviors of honeybees.

The Impact of Cannabis sativa and Helianthus annuus Plants on Honey bee Colonies (Apis mellifera L.): Varroa destructor Infestation and Performances

“…Varroa destructor is an arthropod that has a profound impact on honey bee populations, causing significant losses and serving as a vector for various diseases within bee colonies (Rehm & Ritter, 1989;Anderson & Truman, 2000;Morse & Fluton, 1997;Lamas et al, 2023). The mite shows genomic variation at the subspecies level, and each of them has different levels of detrimental impacts on the honey bees (Anderson & Trueman, 2000;Hua et al, 2023;Zheguang et al, 2023). Today, various methods such as heat applications, biological, genetic breeding and biotechnological approaches are employed in the management of Varroa infestations (Kumova, 2004;Girişgin et al, 2007;Çetin, 2010;Koşat, 2016;Guler, 2017;Çakmak, 2017;Seven et al, 2017;Aydın, 2018;Demirezen, 2019).…”

“…These activities include toxicity, repellant or attraction, reproductive inhibition, behavioral disorder and growth regulatory effects. However, it has been reported that some organic or synthetic drugs and industrial carbohydrates negatively affect the colonies, causing stress and worker bee deaths (Guler et al, 2018;Nisbet et al, 2018a;Bava et al, 2023;Zheguang et al, 2023). For example, high doses of thymol can induce genomic cell poisoning (Glavini´c et al, 2023).…”

“…Genes (AmILP-1, BRP, Vg) and gene expression structures that affect growth, development, behavior and lifespan may vary according to age and food diets (Koru, 2018;Bozkurt et al, 2022). For this reason, the quality and richness of the flora resources in the areas where the colonies are placed contribute not only to their efficiency but also to their health (Winston, 1991;Brodschneider & Crailsheim, 2010;Guler, 2017). As a matter of fact, thanks to the important fatty acids that are components of pollen, the honeycomb cells are made hygienic before the queen bee lays eggs (Winston, 1991;Öder, 1993).…”

“…For this reason, the quality and richness of the flora resources in the areas where the colonies are placed contribute not only to their efficiency but also to their health (Winston, 1991;Brodschneider & Crailsheim, 2010;Guler, 2017). As a matter of fact, thanks to the important fatty acids that are components of pollen, the honeycomb cells are made hygienic before the queen bee lays eggs (Winston, 1991;Öder, 1993). One of these plants is cannabis.…”