Population dynamics of the Cape bee phenomenon:
The impact of parasitic laying worker clones
in apiaries and natural populations

Moritz, Robin F. A.

doi:10.1051/apido:2002002

Cited by 23 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…A. m. capensis workers are able to lay diploid eggs and produce queen-like signals (Onions 1912;Martin et al 2002;Neumann and Moritz 2002;Pirk et al 2012). These A. mellifera capensis social parasites do not contribute to the work force and their offspring do not replace the host workers, but these social parasites and their clonal offspring just reproduce which then results in the collapse of the host colony (Hillesheim et al 1989;Neumann et al 2001;Moritz 2002;Neumann and Hepburn 2002). This parasite is spread by migratory beekeepers during pollination and has resulted in large-scale colony losses with significant economic implications for the South African beekeeping industry (Allsopp and Crewe 1993;Johannsmeier 1994;Moritz 2002;Kryger et al 2003;Dietemann et al 2006;Pirk et al 2014).…”

Section: Honeybeesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Honeybee health in Africa—a review

Pirk¹,

Strauss²,

Yusuf³

et al. 2015

Apidologie

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-Honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) pathogens and parasites and the negative effects thereof on honeybee populations remain an issue of public concern and the subject of active research. Africa with its high genetic diversity of honeybee sub-species and large wild population is also exposed to various factors responsible for colony losses in other parts of the world. Apart from the current American foulbrood epidemic in the Western Cape of South Africa, no large-scale colony losses have been reported elsewhere on the continent. We discuss the presence of pathogens, parasites, pests and predators of African honeybees as well as the threats they face in relation to habitat changes arising from the impact of increased human populations. In addition, we discuss current efforts aimed at protecting and promoting the health of African honeybees.honeybees / Africa / honeybee health / pathogens / parasites / pests / predators / habitat loss

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Section: Honeybeesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Honeybee health in Africa—a review

Pirk¹,

Strauss²,

Yusuf³

et al. 2015

Apidologie

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“…The resulting adults, therefore, are not queen-like and display normal social phenotypes that engage in collective division of labor. Genetic analysis has further shown that all workers with the malignant A. m. capensis phenotype, although collected from different A. m. scutellata colonies, are the parthenogenetic descendants of a single bee (Moritz, 2002). It has been proposed that this clonal population emerged from an extraordinary A. m. scutellata nest infestation; one A. m. capensis worker genotype suited to evade the full array of control mechanisms inherent to the host society.…”

Section: B Social Cancermentioning

confidence: 99%

Order, Disorder, Death: Lessons from a Superorganism

Amdam¹,

Seehuus²

2006

Advances in Cancer Research

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Animal models contribute to the understanding of molecular mechanism of cancer, revealing complex roles of altered cellular-signaling networks and deficient surveillance systems. Analogous pathologies are documented in an unconventional model organism that receives attention in research on systems theory, evolution, and aging. The honeybee (Apis mellifera) colony is an advanced integrative unit, a "superorganism" in which order is controlled via complex signaling cascades and surveillance schemes. A facultatively sterile caste, the workers, regulates patterns of growth, differentiation, homeostasis, and death. Workers differentiate into temporal phenotypes in response to dynamic social cues; chemosensory signals that can translate into dramatic physiological responses, including programmed cell death. Temporal worker forms function together, and effectively identify and terminate abnormal colony members ranging from embryos to adults. As long as this regulatory system is operational at a colony level, the unit survives and propagates. However, if the worker phenotypes that collectively govern order become too few or change into malignant forms that bypass control mechanisms to replicate aberrantly; order is replaced by disorder that ultimately leads to the destruction of the society. In this chapter we describe fundamental properties of honeybee social organization, and explore conditions that lead to states of disorder. Our hope is that this chapter will be an inspirational source for ongoing and future work in the field of cancer research.

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“…workers cannot remain alive on its own and eventually dwindles and dies (Swart et al, 2001;Martin et al, 2002b;Moritz, 2002). These observations evoke a number of considerations.…”

Section: Transmission Of Social Parasitic Cape Honeybee Workersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Behavioural basis for social parasitism of Cape honeybees (Apis mellifera capensis)

Neumann

Hepburn

2002

Apidologie

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-Cape honeybee workers show important pre-adaptations for social parasitism and can cause the dwindling colony syndrome of host colonies. Parasitic workers may drift or actively disperse into host colonies. They may also join absconding swarms, which can merge with host colonies. After transmission, parasitic workers have to establish themselves in the host, which is probably promoted by their spatial distribution, their readiness to gain trophallactic dominance and their ability to survive worker-worker aggression. Established parasitic workers have to evade egg removal by other workers in host colonies. The resulting offspring is preferentially fed, can be expected to be highly virulent and may show different behaviour in the course of infestation. It is unknown why and how the host queen is lost. High numbers of parasitic workers are reared until the host colony dies or absconds. This offspring can infest new host colonies, thereby completing the social parasitic life cycle.Apis mellifera capensis / Apis mellifera scutellata / honeybee / social parasitism / worker reproduction

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Population dynamics of the Cape bee phenomenon: The impact of parasitic laying worker clones in apiaries and natural populations

Cited by 23 publications

References 20 publications

Honeybee health in Africa—a review

Honeybee health in Africa—a review

Order, Disorder, Death: Lessons from a Superorganism

Behavioural basis for social parasitism of Cape honeybees (Apis mellifera capensis)

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