Varroa destructor infestation impact on A. m. iberica capped worker brood, bee population and honey storage

This study investigated the impact of Varroa infestation on the amount of capped brood, adult bee population and honey production of authenticated A. m. iberica colonies kept in a Mediterranean climate (N38º34', W07º54'). For this purpose, colonies were set-up and either maintained mite-free or artificially mite-infested and allowed to develop an infestation. Periodical evaluations of those colonies unravelled the pattern of the previously mentioned variables across the season, and allowed for comparative numerical analyses. Progressive reductions on the amount of capped brood, bee population and honey storage in mite-infested colonies only became increasingly evident during spring and summer, apparently associated with considerable mite population increases. By the end of the experiment, mite-infested colonies showed a unitary average reduction of 62 % in the amount of capped honey they stored, meaning an average annual loss of 18 kg of honey per colony. This resulted not only from the overriding effect that Varroa infestation had on the adult honey bee population of infested colonies, but also from a statistically significant reduction on the amount of capped honey stored per bee and day during the main honey flow season, suggesting a direct effect of Varroa infestation on honey hoarding behaviour.

Varroa; Criação; População; Abelhas / Varroa; Worker brood; Population; Honey bees.