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Siefert P, Lau H, Leutz V, Leonhardt SD, Schneider G, Klein J, Grünewald B. Acetylcholine and choline in honey bee (Apis mellifera) worker brood food are seasonal and age-dependent. Sci Rep 2024; 14:18274. [PMID: 39107404 PMCID: PMC11303543 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-68650-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2024] [Accepted: 07/26/2024] [Indexed: 08/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Nursing honeybees produce brood food with millimolar concentrations of acetylcholine (ACh), which is synthesized through head gland secretions mixed with honey stomach contents. While we previously demonstrated the necessity of ACh for proper larval development, the dynamics of ACh levels throughout ontogenesis and their seasonal variations have remained unclear until now. Our HPLC analysis reveals dependencies of choline and ACh levels on larval development days (LDDs), influenced by seasonal (April-September) variations. Median ACh concentrations peak on LDD 2, declining significantly toward cell capping, while choline levels are lowest during the initial LDDs, rising markedly toward cell capping. Seasonal patterns show peak ACh levels from April to June and a low in August, paralleling choline's peak in July and low in August. This seasonality holds consistently across multiple years (2020-2022) and colonies, despite potential variations in colony performance and environmental conditions. Our analysis found no correlation between temperature, sunshine, precipitation, or favourable foraging days and ACh/choline levels, suggesting the involvement of additional factors. These findings underscore the seasonal fluctuation of ACh levels and its potential implications for the genetic programs governing winter bee development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Siefert
- Institut für Bienenkunde, Polytechnische Gesellschaft, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany.
| | - Helene Lau
- Institute of Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - Vivien Leutz
- Institut für Bienenkunde, Polytechnische Gesellschaft, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - Sara Diana Leonhardt
- Plant-Insect Interactions, TUM School of Life Science Systems, Technical University of Munich, Freising, Germany
| | - Gaby Schneider
- Institute of Mathematics, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - Jochen Klein
- Institute of Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
| | - Bernd Grünewald
- Institut für Bienenkunde, Polytechnische Gesellschaft, Goethe University, Frankfurt Am Main, Germany
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Bryś MS, Strachecka A. The Key Role of Amino Acids in Pollen Quality and Honey Bee Physiology-A Review. Molecules 2024; 29:2605. [PMID: 38893480 PMCID: PMC11173770 DOI: 10.3390/molecules29112605] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2024] [Revised: 05/29/2024] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/21/2024] Open
Abstract
When studying honey bee nutrition, it is important to pay attention not only to the quantity but also to the quality of pollen for floral visitors. The recommended way to determine the value of pollen is to determine both the protein concentration and the amino acid composition in the insect's hemolymph. In addition, the composition of pollen also includes lipids, sterols and biogenic elements such as carbon, nitrogen, etc. Very high protein concentration is observed in aloe pollen, averaging 51%. Plants with a high protein content, at the level of 27% in Europe, are rapeseed and phacelia. In turn, a plant that is poor in protein (at the level of 11%) is buckwheat. The aforementioned plants are sown over very large areas. Vast acreages in Central and Eastern Europe are occupied by pollen- and nectar-providing invasive plants, such as goldenrod. Therefore, bees are forced to use one food source-a mono diet-which results in their malnutrition. In the absence of natural pollen, beekeepers use other foods for bees; including soy protein, powdered milk, egg yolks, fish meal, etc. However, the colony is the strongest when bees are fed with pollen, as opposed to artificial protein diets. More research is needed on the relationship between bee pollen composition and nutrition, as measured by protein concentration and amino acid composition in apian hemolymph, colony strength, honey yield and good overwintering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maciej Sylwester Bryś
- Department of Invertebrate Ecophysiology and Experimental Biology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Doświadczalna 50a, 20-280 Lublin, Poland;
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Landaverde R, Rodriguez MT, Parrella JA. Honey Production and Climate Change: Beekeepers' Perceptions, Farm Adaptation Strategies, and Information Needs. INSECTS 2023; 14:493. [PMID: 37367309 DOI: 10.3390/insects14060493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2023] [Revised: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
Because climate change has severely impacted global bee populations by depleting their habitats and food sources, beekeepers must implement management practices to adapt to changing climates. However, beekeepers in El Salvador lack information about necessary climate change adaptation strategies. This study explored Salvadoran beekeepers' experiences adapting to climate change. The researchers used a phenomenological case study approach and conducted semi-structured interviews with nine Salvadoran beekeepers who were members of The Cooperative Association for Marketing, Production, Savings, and Credit of Beekeepers of Chalatenango (ACCOPIDECHA). The beekeepers perceived water and food scarcity, as well as extreme weather events (e.g., increasing temperature, rain, winds), as the leading climate change-induced challenges to their production. Such challenges have augmented their honey bees' physiological need for water, limited their movement patterns, decreased apiary safety, and increased the incidence of pests and diseases, all of which have led to honey bee mortality. The beekeepers shared adaptation strategies, including box modification, apiary relocation, and food supplementation. Although most beekeepers accessed climate change information using the internet, they struggled to understand and apply pertinent information unless they received it from trusted ACCOPIDECHA personnel. Salvadoran beekeepers require information and demonstrations to improve their climate change adaptation strategies and implement new ones to address the challenges they experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafael Landaverde
- Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Mary T Rodriguez
- Department of Agricultural Communication, Education and Leadership, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Jean A Parrella
- Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
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Jachuła J, Denisow B, Wrzesień M, Ziółkowska E. The need for weeds: Man-made, non-cropped habitats complement crops and natural habitats in providing honey bees and bumble bees with pollen resources. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 840:156551. [PMID: 35688241 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.156551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2022] [Revised: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 06/04/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
In Europe, honey bees and bumble bees are among the most important pollinators, and there is a growing interest in understanding the effects of floral resource availability on their survival. Yet, to date, data on nectar and pollen supplies available to bees in agricultural landscapes are still scarce. In this paper, we quantify species-, habitat- and landscape-scale pollen production in the Lublin Upland, SE Poland. The production per unit area was highest (mean = 2.2-2.6 g/m2) in non-forest woody vegetation, field margins and fallows, whilst significantly lower pollen amounts were shown to be available in road verges and railway embankments (mean = 1.3-1.6 g/m2). At landscape scale, natural and semi-natural areas (forests and meadows/pastures) offered ca. 44% of the total pollen resources during the year. Relatively high amounts of pollen (ca. 35% of the year-round total pollen resources) were from winter rape, but this resource was short-term. Man-made, non-cropped habitats added only ca. 18% of the total pollen mass offered for pollinators during flowering season. However, they provided 66-99% of pollen resources available from July to October. There exists an imbalance in the availability of pollen resources throughout the year. Hence, a diversity of natural, semi-natural and man-made, non-cropped areas is required to support the seasonal continuity of pollen resources for pollinators in an agricultural landscape. Efforts should be made to secure habitat heterogeneity to enhance the flower diversity and continual pollen availability for pollinators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacek Jachuła
- Department of Botany and Plant Physiology, Subdepartment of Plant Biology, University of Life Sciences, 15 Akademicka St., 20-950 Lublin, Poland; The National Institute of Horticultural Research, Konstytucji 3 Maja 1/3, 96-100 Skierniewice, Poland.
| | - Bożena Denisow
- Department of Botany and Plant Physiology, Subdepartment of Plant Biology, University of Life Sciences, 15 Akademicka St., 20-950 Lublin, Poland.
| | - Małgorzata Wrzesień
- Department of Botany, Mycology and Ecology, Maria Curie-Sklodowska University, 19 Akademicka St., 20-033 Lublin, Poland.
| | - Elżbieta Ziółkowska
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387 Kraków, Poland.
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Malagnini V, Cappellari A, Marini L, Zanotelli L, Zorer R, Angeli G, Ioriatti C, Fontana P. Seasonality and Landscape Composition Drive the Diversity of Pollen Collected by Managed Honey Bees. FRONTIERS IN SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fsufs.2022.865368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The western honey bee, Apis mellifera, is the most important and widespread managed pollinator species. Honey bee diet is based on nectar and pollen, and pollen diversity and composition, in particular, affect colony health and fitness. As landscape composition is strongly linked to floral resource heterogeneity, it could influence the resource intake of honey bees. This work aimed to explore how the composition of pollen collected by honey bees was modulated by seasonality and landscape composition heterogeneity in a mountainous cultivated area of Northern Italy. We selected 13 locations, and at each location, we placed two honey bee colonies from which we collected pollen samples every month during the whole flowering season for two consecutive years. We then analyzed pollen samples in the laboratory and determined the Shannon diversity index of each pollen sample and the temporal pollen taxon replacement. We extracted the cover of the main habitat types at three spatial scales and tested the effect of landscape diversity and composition using Principal Component Analysis. Honey bees foraged on a high number of floral resources, however, they mostly collected pollen from a small number of taxa, with pollen type composition changing throughout the flowering season. In early spring and late summer, most pollen grains were collected from a few plant species, while from May to August the number of collected pollen types was significantly higher. Landscape composition affected pollen diversity only at the end of the flowering season. While honey bees were able to collect highly diverse pollen throughout spring and summer regardless of landscape composition, in late summer, when pollen collected is fundamental for the overwintering of the colony and its development in the following season, semi-natural areas became crucial for honey bee foraging activities, with pollen diversity increasing with increasing percentages of semi-natural areas. Our research highlighted the importance for honey bees of certain seasonal resources and of semi-natural habitats at the end of the flowering season, which ensure the subsistence of their colonies throughout the year.
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Bradford M, Venz M, Bell KL, Hogan L, Smith GC, Eby P, Eyre TJ, McKeown A, Vanderduys E, MacDonald S, Westcott D. The diet of a specialist nectarivore in Australia: The little red flying‐fox (
Pteropus scapulatus
, Pteropodidae). AUSTRAL ECOL 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/aec.13143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Melanie Venz
- QLD Herbarium QLD Department of Environment and Science Toowong Queensland 4066 Australia
| | - Karen L. Bell
- CSIRO Health & Biosecurity Floreat Western Australia Australia
- School of Biological Sciences University of Western Australia Crawley Western Australia Australia
| | - Luke Hogan
- QLD Herbarium QLD Department of Environment and Science Toowong Queensland 4066 Australia
| | - Geoffrey C. Smith
- QLD Herbarium QLD Department of Environment and Science Toowong Queensland 4066 Australia
| | - Peggy Eby
- Centre for Ecosystem Science University of New South Wales Sydney New South Wales Australia
| | - Teresa J. Eyre
- QLD Herbarium QLD Department of Environment and Science Toowong Queensland 4066 Australia
| | - Adam McKeown
- CSIRO Land and Water Waite South Australia Australia
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Rapid and Accurate Approach for Honeybee Pollen Analysis Using ED-XRF and FTIR Spectroscopy. Molecules 2021; 26:molecules26196024. [PMID: 34641568 PMCID: PMC8512728 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26196024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2021] [Revised: 09/24/2021] [Accepted: 09/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Since honeybee pollen is considered a “perfectly complete food” and is characterized by many beneficial properties (anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-bacterial, etc.), it has begun to be used for therapeutic purposes. Consequently, there is a high need to develop methods for controlling its composition. A thorough bee pollen analysis can be very informative regarding its safety for consumption, the variability of its composition, its biogeographical origin, or harvest date. Therefore, in this study, two reliable and non-destructive spectroscopy methods, i.e., ED-XRF and ATR–FTIR, are proposed as a fast approach to characterize bee pollen. The collected samples were derived from apiaries located in west-central Poland. Additionally, some commercially available samples were analyzed. The applied methodology was optimized and combined with sophisticated chemometric tools. Data derived from IR analyses were also subjected to two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy. The developed ED-XRF method allowed the reliable quantification of eight macro- and micro-nutrients, while organic components were characterized by IR spectroscopy. Principal component analysis, cluster analysis, and obtained synchronous and asynchronous maps allowed the study of component changes occurring dependently on the date and location of harvest. The proposed approach proved to be an excellent tool to monitor the variability of the inorganic and organic content of bee pollen.
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Simanonok SC, Otto CRV, Buhl DA. Floral resource selection by wild bees and honey bees in the Midwest United States: implications for designing pollinator habitat. Restor Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.13456] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Stacy C. Simanonok
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center 8711, 37th Street SE Jamestown ND 58401 U.S.A
| | - Clint R. V. Otto
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center 8711, 37th Street SE Jamestown ND 58401 U.S.A
| | - Deborah A. Buhl
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center 8711, 37th Street SE Jamestown ND 58401 U.S.A
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Descamps C, Quinet M, Jacquemart AL. Climate Change-Induced Stress Reduce Quantity and Alter Composition of Nectar and Pollen From a Bee-Pollinated Species ( Borago officinalis, Boraginaceae). FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2021; 12:755843. [PMID: 34707633 PMCID: PMC8542702 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2021.755843] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2021] [Accepted: 09/20/2021] [Indexed: 05/14/2023]
Abstract
In temperate ecosystems, elevated temperatures, and drought occur especially during spring and summer, which are crucial periods for flowering, pollination, and reproduction of a majority of temperate plants. While many mechanisms may underlie pollinator decline in the wake of climate change, the interactive effects of temperature and water stress on the quantity and quality of floral nectar and pollen resources remain poorly studied. We investigated the impact of temperature rise (+3 and +6°C) and water stress (soil humidity lower than 15%) on the floral resources produced by the bee-pollinated species Borago officinalis. Nectar volume decreased with both temperature rise and water stress (6.1 ± 0.5 μl per flower under control conditions, 0.8 ± 0.1 μl per flower under high temperature and water stress conditions), resulting in a 60% decrease in the total quantity of nectar sugars (mg) produced per flower. Temperature rise but not water stress also induced a 50% decrease in pollen weight per flower but a 65% increase in pollen polypeptide concentration. Both temperature rise and water stress increased the total amino acid concentration and the essential amino acid percentage in nectar but not in pollen. In both pollen and nectar, the relative percentage of the different amino acids were modified under stresses. We discuss these modifications in floral resources in regards to plant-pollinator interactions and consequences on plant pollination success and on insect nutritional needs.
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