Natural Varroa mite-surviving Apis mellifera honeybee populations

Locke, Barbara

doi:10.1007/s13592-015-0412-8

Cited by 153 publications

(198 citation statements)

References 106 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

191

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…We also know that the leave-aloneand-let-die experiment on Gotland in Sweden (Fries et al 2003) produced survivor colonies that were much smaller (and more inclined to swarm?) than the original colonies (Locke and Fries 2011;Locke 2016). Furthermore, the present study found that colonies that had a queen change (probably by swarming) ended the summer with much lower mite-drop counts than colonies that lacked a queen change (average 23 vs. 122 mites/48 h).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 41%

“…North America, colonies of the hive honey bee (Apis mellifera ) became infested with an ectoparasitic mite (Varroa destructor ) (reviewed by Locke 2016). Researchers found that if a colony of European-derived honey bees is not treated for V. destructor , then in a year or two, the colony's mite population will surge, the bees' virus titers will skyrocket, and the colony will die (Korpela et al 1992;Fries et al 2006).…”

Section: Starting In 1952 In Europe and In 1987 Inmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Life-history traits of wild honey bee colonies living in forests around Ithaca, NY, USA

Seeley

2017

Apidologie

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

-Wild honey bee colonies-both truly wild (in trees and buildings) and simulated wild (in small hives)-were studied to determine their life-history traits, to see if these traits have changed now that these colonies are infested with Varroa destructor . Most colonies (97%) survive summers, but only 23% of founder (first-year) colonies and 84% of established colonies survive winters. Established colonies have a mean lifespan of 5-6 years and most (87%) have a queen turnover (probably by swarming) each summer. A population model shows that these life-history traits produce a stable population of colonies. Remarkably, the suite of colony life-history traits found in the 2010s (with V. destructor ) matches that found in the 1970s (without V. destructor ). It seems likely that the wild colonies living near Ithaca, NY, possess defenses against V. destructor that are not costly.Apis mellifera / life-history evolution / colony survival / deformed wing virus / Varroa destructor / wild honey bees

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 41%

Section: Starting In 1952 In Europe and In 1987 Inmentioning

confidence: 99%

Life-history traits of wild honey bee colonies living in forests around Ithaca, NY, USA

Seeley

2017

Apidologie

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Bees may actually learn or evolve to shift their resin collection towards sources with acaricide activity as suggested by the study of Popova et al [109] who found a higher content of three biologically active compounds in propolis from V. destructor resistant colonies (for a review see [110]). In fact, the existence of several V. destructor mite-surviving A. mellifera populations indicates that natural selection can lead to a stable parasite-host relationship, as seen, e.g., in African and Africanized honeybees which occur in large wild V. destructor mite resistant populations [97].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inside Honeybee Hives: Impact of Natural Propolis on the Ectoparasitic Mite Varroa destructor and Viruses

Drescher

Klein

Neumann

et al. 2017

Insects

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Social immunity is a key factor for honeybee health, including behavioral defense strategies such as the collective use of antimicrobial plant resins (propolis). While laboratory data repeatedly show significant propolis effects, field data are scarce, especially at the colony level. Here, we investigated whether propolis, as naturally deposited in the nests, can protect honeybees against ectoparasitic mites Varroa destructor and associated viruses, which are currently considered the most serious biological threat to European honeybee subspecies, Apis mellifera, globally. Propolis intake of 10 field colonies was manipulated by either reducing or adding freshly collected propolis. Mite infestations, titers of deformed wing virus (DWV) and sacbrood virus (SBV), resin intake, as well as colony strength were recorded monthly from July to September 2013. We additionally examined the effect of raw propolis volatiles on mite survival in laboratory assays. Our results showed no significant effects of adding or removing propolis on mite survival and infestation levels. However, in relation to V. destructor, DWV titers increased significantly less in colonies with added propolis than in propolis-removed colonies, whereas SBV titers were similar. Colonies with added propolis were also significantly stronger than propolis-removed colonies. These findings indicate that propolis may interfere with the dynamics of V. destructor-transmitted viruses, thereby further emphasizing the importance of propolis for honeybee health.

show abstract

“…It was originally suggested that the Japanese haplotype of Varroa was less ‘virulent’ than the Korean haplotype33. This was proposed as the reason for Varroa tolerance among the Fernando de Noronha population3435 and in Africanized bees36. However, the Korean haplotype is now found in Africanized bees without any loss of tolerance37.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Oldest Varroa tolerant honey bee population provides insight into the origins of the global decline of honey bees

Brettell

Martin

2017

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The ecto-parasitic mite Varroa destructor has transformed the previously inconsequential Deformed Wing Virus (DWV) into the most important honey bee viral pathogen responsible for the death of millions of colonies worldwide. Naturally, DWV persists as a low level covert infection transmitted between nest-mates. It has long been speculated that Varroa via immunosuppression of the bees, activate a covert infection into an overt one. Here we show that despite Varroa feeding on a population of 20–40 colonies for over 30 years on the remote island of Fernando de Noronha, Brazil no such activation has occurred and DWV loads have remained at borderline levels of detection. This supports the alternative theory that for a new vector borne viral transmission cycle to start, an outbreak of an overt infection must first occur within the host. Therefore, we predict that this honey bee population is a ticking time-bomb, protected by its isolated position and small population size. This unique association between mite and bee persists due to the evolution of low Varroa reproduction rates. So the population is not adapted to tolerate Varroa and DWV, rather the viral quasispecies has simply not yet evolved the necessary mutations to produce a virulent variant.

show abstract

Natural Varroa mite-surviving Apis mellifera honeybee populations

Cited by 153 publications

References 106 publications

Life-history traits of wild honey bee colonies living in forests around Ithaca, NY, USA

Life-history traits of wild honey bee colonies living in forests around Ithaca, NY, USA

Inside Honeybee Hives: Impact of Natural Propolis on the Ectoparasitic Mite Varroa destructor and Viruses

Oldest Varroa tolerant honey bee population provides insight into the origins of the global decline of honey bees

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About