Vol.52 No.1 2008 Content Zbigniew Lipiński, Krystyna Żółtowska, Joanna Wawrowska, Monika Zaleska - The concentration of carbohydrates in the developmental stages of the Apis mellifera carnica drone brood 5 Dariusz Gerula, Małgorzata Bieńkowska - Sperformance of artificially inseminated honeybee queens that have bodily injuries 13 Bożena Denisow, Małgorzata Bożek - Blooming and pollen production of two Lamium L. species 21 Małgorzata Bożek - Pollen yield and pollen grain dimensions of some late-summer plant species of the lamiaceae family 31 Wit Chmielewski, Richard A. Baker - Mites (Acarina) phoretic on some common bumblebee species (Bombus spp.) from the Puławy area (south-eastern Poland) 37 Aneta J. Strachecka, Jerzy Paleolog, Krzysztof Grzywnowicz - The surface proteolytic activity in Apis mellifera 49 Piotr Semkiw, Wojciech Skowronek, Piotr Skubida - Changes in water content of honey during ripening under controlled condition. 57 Piotr Skubida, Piotr Semkiw, Krystyna Pohorecka - Stimulative feeding of bees as one factor in preparing colonies for early nectar flows 65 Dariusz Teper - Food plants of Megachile rotundata L. determined based on palinological analysis of faece 73 Ernest Stawiarz - Pollen spectrum of rapeseed honey from the Sandomierska Upland area 83 Adam Roman, Nina Szczęsna - Assessment of the flying activity of the buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris L.) on greenhouse-grown tomatoes 93 THE CONCENTRATION OF CARBOHYDRATES IN THE DEVELOPMENTAL STAGES OF THE Apis mellifera carnica DRONE BROOD Zbigniew Lipiński1, Krystyna Żółtowska2, Joanna Wawrowska2, Monika Zaleska2 1 Wengris 8, 10-735 Olsztyn, Poland, e-mail: Lipinski@sprint.com.pl 2 Division of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biology, University of Warmia and Mazury, Oczapowskiego 1A, 10-719 Olsztyn, Poland, e-mail: k.zoltowska@uwm.edu.pl Received 12 October 2007; accepted 18 February 2008 Summary The concentrations of sugars were investigated in the Apis mellifera carnica drone brood in successive development stages. These stages are from the newly hatched larvae to the freshly emerged imago. Brood of all stages contained glycogen, trehalose and glucose. The glycogen concentration was higher in the fresh matter of all stages than trehalose and glucose. It was high in 1-2 day-old larvae (92.1 mg/g tissue), then decreased by half in 3-4 day-old larvae, and then reached 117.0 mg/g just before sealing. Sealed larvae contained almost 50% less glycogen than that close to cell capping. A subsequent increase occurred in the prepupae and pupae. The highest concentration (127.4 mg/g) was observed in pupae with pink eyes. Freshly emerged drones had the lowest level (6.1 mg/g) of glycogen. The lowest concentration of trehalose was observed in four-day-old larvae (1.5 mg/g). A significant increase occurred before sealing; but the highest concentration was found in larvae spinning the cocoon (12.9 mg/g). After that it continuously decreased. Freshly emerged drones had little trehalose (3.2 mg/g). Differences between all described means were statistically significant. The glucose concentration was low in brood of all developmental stages and ranged from 1.3 - 3.0 mg/g of fresh matter. Only the concentration in prepupae was significantly lower than in other stages. Keywords: Apis mellifera, brood development, carbohydrates, glycogen, trehalose. Full text PDF Back to the top PERFORMANCE OF ARTIFICIALLY INSEMINATED HONEYBEE QUEENS THAT HAVE BODILY INJURIES Dariusz Gerula, Małgorzata Bieńkowska Research Institute of Pomology and Floriculture, Apiculture Division, Kazimierska 2, 24-100 Puławy, Poland, e-mail: dariusz.gerula@man.pulawy.pl Received 12 November 2007; accepted 07 March 2008 Summary The aim of the study was three-fold: 1) to examine the acceptance by the bees of artificially inseminated honeybee queens which have bodily injuries and 2) the effect of different kinds of injuries on the egg-laying abilities of the queens and 3) the propensity of the bees to supersedure. A total of 396 honeybee queens were studied. Their condition was examined under a microscope prior to and after introduction into bee colonies. Among the 330 queens introduced into the colonies, 31 had their claws and arolia injured. Their claws and arolia were injured prior to the introduction into the bee colonies. The bees did not accept 13.0% of the uninjured and 3.2% of the injured queens. The colonies with the uninjured queens occupied only slightly more combs (10.5) than did the colonies with queens, which had injuries to their claws and arolia (9.7) or with queens with paralyzed legs (10.2). The colonies with queens with missing parts of their legs and with injured antennae were weaker as they occupied significantly fewer combs; 8.6 and 7.6, respectively. The greatest average brood area in the first ten days of June was in colonies with uninjured queens (54.5 dm2). The brood area was lower, although insignificantly, in the colonies where the queens had injured arolia and claws or paralyzed legs; 51.8 and 51.7 dm2, respectively. There was significantly less brood area in the colonies where the queens had some leg parts missing or had injured antennae; 30.8 dm2 and 34.6 dm2, respectively. Out of 396 examined queens, 18.7% were supersedured. Uninjured queens were significantly less frequently supersedured by bees (11.3%) than the injured ones. Supersedured queens with injuries to their arolia and claws accounted for 11.3%, those with paralyzed legs and missing leg parts for 33.3 and 37.5%, respectively. As many as 83.3% of queens with injured antennae were supersedured. Keywords: honeybee queen, injured queens, insemination, supersedure, oviposition Full text PDF Back to the top BLOOMING AND POLLEN PRODUCTION OF TWO Lamium L. SPECIES Bożena Denisow, Małgorzata Bożek Department of Botany, Laboratory of Horticultural Plants Biology, University of Life Sciences , Akademicka 15, 20-950 Lublin, Poland Received 27 November 2007; accepted 19 April 2008 Summary The studies of the period and abundance of flowering, and the seasonal and diurnal dynamics of Lamium purpureum and L. album blooming, were carried out from 1995-1997 in Puławy, Poland and from 2002-2005 in Lublin, Poland. Some morphological features of flowers were observed. The abundance of pollen produced in anthers and flowers was studied. Both species develop similar number of flowers per plant (38.3-46.8 - L. purpureum, 30.4-58.9 - L. album). Most flowers bloom in the morning hours. The diurnal dynamics of L. album blooming fluctuates slightly depending on the daylength of the season. The flowering of the studied species is weather dependent. Drought seems to be a strong limiting factor of flower development. The mass of pollen produced in anthers is positively correlated with anther size. Anthers of Lamium album produced from 3.5 mg to 7.15 mg of pollen per 100 anthers. Smaller sized L. purpureum produced only 0.45- 1.18 mg per 100 anthers. Pollen grains of the Lamium studied, are trizonocolpate, medium and prolatum (P/E = 1.17). The time and abundance of blooming as well as the amount of delivered pollen indicate that the studied species are attractive as a supplementary food source mainly for wild pollinators. Keywords: Lamium sp., blooming, pollen production, bee forage. Full text PDF Back to the top POLLEN YIELD AND POLLEN GRAIN DIMENSIONS OF SOME LATE-SUMMER PLANT SPECIES OF THE LAMIACEAE FAMILY Małgorzata Bożek Department of Botany, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, 20-950 Lublin, Akademicka 15 e-mail: malgorzata.bozek@ar.lublin.pl Received 03 Janury 2008; accepted 25 April 2008 Summary The aim of this study was to determine pollen yield and pollen grain dimensions of several late-summer Lamiaceae family species: Physostegia virginiana (L.) Benth., Mentha rotundifolia (L.) Huds., M. longifolia (L.) Huds., Pycnanthemum californicum Torr. ex Durand, Elsholtzia cristata Willd., Satureja hortensis L., Leonurus sibiricus L. The study was conducted at the Institute of Pomology and Floriculture, Apiculture Division, Puławy, Poland in the years 1995 - 1997. The mean weight of pollen per 100 flowers of the species under investigation covered a broad range from 0.34 mg to 21.23 mg. The yield of pollen varied from 10 kgˇha-1 to 131 kgˇha-1. Honeybee pollen loads of the investigated species were usually small. It was only on the Elsholtzia cristata flowers that the bees had larger pollen loads. The pollen grains of the studied species can be classified as medium-sized (P = 26.33 - 47.55 ěm, E = 20.5 - 44.48 ěm). Keywords: Lamiaceae, pollen production, attractiveness to bees. Full text PDF Back to the top Mites (Acarina) PHORETIC ON SOME COMMON BUMBLEBEE SPECIES (Bombus spp.) FROM THE PUŁAWY AREA (SOUTH-EASTERN POLAND) Wit Chmielewski 1, Richard A. Baker 2 1 Research Institute of Pomology and Floriculture, Apiculture Division, Kazimierska 2, 24-100 Puławy, Poland e-mail: wit.chmielewski@man.pulawy.pl 2 Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK e-mail: R.A.Baker@leeds.ac.uk Received 06 February 2008; accepted 31 March 2008 Summary A total of 425 bumblebees from the 4 species: Bombus lapidarius, B. lucorum, B. pascuorum and B. terrestris were examined for external mites. The following phoretic mites were recorded - Kuzinia laevis (Dujardin) together with phoretic hypopi of several Acaroidea (Caloglyphus, Calvolia) and Anoetoidea (Histiostoma spp.), Scutacarus acarorum (Goeze) and Parasitellus fucorum (De Geer). Several other mites, belonging mainly to the mesostigmatid group, were recorded and identified to either family or genus only. Bees were collected from blossom of wild and cultivated plants in the Puławy district of Poland. Mites were recorded for prevalence and for intensity on queens, drones and worker bees and separately for each mite species. There was an overall prevalence of 50.4%, with 42% on workers, 65% on drones and 93% on queens. Prevalence for individual bee species was B. lapidarius 45.4%, B. lucorum 70.0%, B. pascuorum 33.7% and B. terrestris 69.4%. Numbers of mites varied enormously and ranged from one individual to over 100 per bumblebee. The adaptations of each species for life on the surface of bees includes sucker plates, tactile tarsal setae and sensilla, strongly curved and powerful claws, small size and dorso-ventrally flattened body shape. Phoresy and the feeding habits of these bee mites are discussed as well as the role of flowers in the transfer of mites from bee to bee. Keywords: Bombus, bumblebees, mites, phoresy, Poland Full text PDF Back to the top THE SURFACE PROTEOLYTIC ACTIVITY IN Apis mellifera Aneta J. Strachecka*, Jerzy Paleolog*, Krzysztof Grzywnowicz** *Department of Biological Basis of Animal Production, Faculty of Biology and Animal Breeding Agricultural University, Akademicka 13, 20-950 Lublin, Poland; e-mail:aneta.ciolek@ar.lublin.pl ** Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biology and Earth Sciences, Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin, Pl. Marii Curie-Skłodowskiej 3, 20-031 Lublin, Poland Received 29 February 2008; accepted 15 May 2008 Summary Proteolytic processes on the body surface of insects have barely been researched. In this work the body surface proteolytic activity was examined in different castes (queens, drones and workers). It was examined at various developmental stages (eggs, larvae, pupae and imagoes) in honey bees in spring, summer, autumn and winter. The following methods were used: protein content testing by the Lowry method (modified by Schacterle - Pollack) and protease activity testing by the Anson method. Our studies revealed a high activity of proteases for the acidic (pH = 2.4), neutral (pH = 7) and alkaline (pH = 11.2) pH. The highest protein concentration values were found in the summer (in living drone pupae - 0.7414 mg/ml; living mature queens - 0.4701 mg/ml; worker larvae - 0.8683 mg/ml). The lowest protein concentration values were in the spring (in mature workers - 0.0015 mg/ml; dead drone pupae - 0.0272 mg/ml). The worker, queen and drone eggs were found to have high protein concentrations in the summer. These high protein concentrations amounted to 0.6264 mg/ml, 0.4001 mg/ml, 0.5793 mg/ml, respectively. However, they had very low proteolytic activity. High proteolytic activity was observed in the drones in the spring and in the workers in the summer. The lowest proteolytic activity was observed on the body surface of the queens. The larvae and pupae were found to have higher proteolytic activity than the imagines. Dead insects had higher proteolytic activity than living organisms. The obtained results revealed the initial pattern of proteolysis on the body surface of honey bees. The obtained results also confirm the validity for doing further biochemical research on body surface proteolytic activity in these insects. Keywords: surface proteolysis, proteases, castes, honey bee Full text PDF Back to the top CHANGES IN WATER CONTENT OF HONEY DURING RIPENING UNDER CONTROLLED CONDITION Piotr Semkiw, Wojciech Skowronek, Piotr Skubida Research Institute of Pomology and Floriculture, Apiculture Division ul. Kazimierska 2, 24 - 100 Puławy, Poland. e - mail: piotr.semkiw@man.pulawy.pl Received 06 April 2008; accepted 25 April 2008 Summary The aim of the study was to determine the conditions under which the water excess evaporates from unripe honey and to examine the dynamics of the process. Different unifloral honey samples collected in apiaries of the Apiculture Division and in commercial apiaries provided the experiment material. During three years of the experiment, 79 samples of unripe honeys, 79 samples of dehydrated honeys and 69 samples of in-hive-ripening honeys were collected. Dehydration of honey samples was performed using a ChigoŽ heat pump air dehumidifier. The efficiency of the dehumidifier was 0.8l/hr according to the manufacturer's specifications with an airflow rate of ca. 200m3/hr. The dehumidifier was placed in a special chamber of 1.07m3 capacity, made of wood and covered with polyethylene foil. The initial water content of the honeys was 22.9%. During a 36 hrs of dehydration process the average water content was lowered to 15.9%. Keywords: honey, water content,dehydration process, air dehumidifier, out-of-hive ripening of honey. Full text PDF Back to the top STIMULATIVE FEEDING OF BEES AS ONE FACTOR IN PREPARING COLONIES FOR EARLY NECTAR FLOWS Piotr Skubida, Piotr Semkiw, Krystyna Pohorecka Research Institute of Pomology and Floriculture, Division of Apiculture, Kazimierska 2, 24 - 100 Puławy. Poland E - mail: piotr.skubda@man.pulawy.pl Received 06 April 2008; accepted 07 May 2008 Summary The research was conducted from 2001 to 2003. The aim was to determine the usefulness of accelerating spring development of colonies, by applying stimulative feeding. The following products were used for feeding: in group II - honey-and-sugar candy, in III - honey-and-sugar candy with the addition of pollen, in IV - sugar syrup. Group I were the control, unstimulated colonies. The tendency for better spring development was observed in the groups of colonies fed with honey-and-sugar candy and candy with the addition of pollen. Later , this group also had greater honey yields. The application of sugar syrup as food stimulating the development of bee colonies, particularly in higher doses, was ineffective. Keywords: stimulative feeding, colony development, honey yield, honey-and-sugar candy, sugar syrup, pollend. Full text PDF Back to the top FOOD PLANTS OF Megachile rotundata L. DETERMINED BASED ON PALINOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF FAECES Dariusz Teper Research Institute of Pomology and Floriculture, Apiculture Division Kazimierska 2, 24-100 Puławy, Poland. E-mail: dariusz.teper@man.pulawy.pl Received 15 Aprl 2008; accepted 19 May 2008 Summary In the years 2003-2004 samples of faeces of Megachile rotundata L. for palinological analysis were collected. These samples were collected for the whole time of the bee's flight period. Each day after dark, the colonies established in tubes were covered with a close-mesh isolator. The following morning, bees while trying to exit the nest, swarmed the isolator and excreted onto its surface. Microscopic preparations of collected faeces were made. The faeces were then subjected to a palinological analysis. In the two years of research, a total of 56 microscopic preparations of Megachile rotundata faeces were made. Of these 56 preparations, 46 types of pollen belonging to 23 plant families were identified. In the first year of the experiment 39 types of pollen were identified. In the following year only 20 types. It was not possible to identify a small part of the pollen due to its degradation in the process of digestion. Damaged pollen grains belonged probably to plant species that produce grains of fine exine. These are the most susceptible for conditions in insects' digestive systems. On the basis of detailed palinological analysis of faeces for each year of the research, a food supply sequence of Megachile rotundata was made. It presents differences in plants species visited by bees over their forage season. Keywords: Megachile rotundata, food plants, pollen analysis of faecese. Full text PDF Back to the top POLLEN SPECTRUM OF RAPESEED HONEY FROM THE SANDOMIERSKA UPLAND Area Ernest Stawiarz University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Department of Botany, Akademicka 15, 20-950 Lublin, Poland. E-mail: ernest.stawiarz@up.lublin.pl Received 18 April 2008; accepted 07 May 2008 Summary The objective of the study, carried out in the years 2003-2005, were 26 samples of honeys originating from apiaries located in the area of the Sandomierska Upland. All the samples appeared to be specific rapeseed honeys consistent with the Polish Bee honey Standard. The analyzed material was found to contain pollen grains of 66 taxa, including 46 of nectariferous and 20 of non-nectariferous plants (anemophilous and entomophilus). The contribution of pollen from Brassica napus ranged from 47.6% to 94.3%. In the group of secondary pollen (16% to 45%), pollen grains originated from Brassicaceae (others), Prunus type, Trifolium repens and Anthriscus type. The highest frequency, apart from Brassica napus, was reported for Brassicaceae (others) and Prunus type whose pollen grains were identified in all the analyzed samples. The contribution of pollen of non-nectariferous plants varied between 0.3% and 50.0%. In that group, the highest frequency (65.4%) was demonstrated for Poaceae (others) and Quercus. Rapeseed honeys were characterized by a variety of colors, i.e. from very bright; almost white, to different hues of cream and light-amber. Their aroma resembled that of rapeseed flowers. Keywords: rapeseed honey, pollen analysis, Sandomierska Upland Full text PDF Back to the top ASSESSMENT OF THE FLYING ACTIVITY OF THE BUFF-TAILED BUMBLEBEE (Bombus terrestris L.) ON GREENHOUSE-GROWN TOMATOES Adam Roman, Nina Szczęsna Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences Department of Animal Hygiene and Ecology, Chełmońskiego 38C, 51 - 630 Wrocław e-mail: adam.roman@up.wroc.pl Received 21April 2008; accepted 29 May 2008 Summary The objective of the study was to assess the flying activity of the buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris L.) on greenhouse-grown tomatoes. The field study was performed in a greenhouse which was 1 ha in area. Inside the greenhouse the tomatoes were being grown. The bumblebees working in the greenhouse were purchased in Belgium, Holland, Italy and Great Britain. Bumblebee flight intensity was evaluated from March to August, 2006, from 7:00a.m. to 7:00p.m. Bumblebees flying out of the hives were counted for 15 min. The results were converted to counts per 1 h. Pollination effectiveness was measured based on 10 tomato shoots picked at random. The optimum ambient temperature for the foraging flights of 11-42 bumblebees per 1h, averaged from 19.6 to 24şC. The lowest flying activities were recorded at greenhouse indoor temperatures below 19.6şC and above 24şC. The work of the bumblebees in the greenhouse was affected by ambient temperatures ranging from 2 to 24şC. The optimum light intensity was 19,6 klx (kilo-lux). Too low or too high light intensity decreased the activity of the bumblebees. The highest visitation rates by the bumblebees were recorded from 7:00a.m. to 7:00p.m. This was a rate of from 10 to 22 bumblebees per 1 h. The data on the pollination efficacy of the tomato crop show that each flower on a shoot was pollinated and developed into a fruit. The Belgium bumblebees were the most active visitors averaging 17.5 bumblebee flights per 1 h. Those from Holland averaged 13 fights per 1 h. Those from Great Britain, 12. The least active were the Italian bumblebees with 9.5 flights per 1 h. Keywords: Bombus terrestris, flight activity, polination of tomato. Full text PDF Back to the top Homepage