Effects of Nosema bombi and its treatment fumagillin on bumble bee (Bombus occidentalis) colonies

2003 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin Whittington ◽  
Mark L. Winston
Keyword(s):  
Bumble Bee ◽  
Nosema Bombi ◽  
Bombus Occidentalis

Horizontal transmission success of Nosema bombi to its adult bumble bee hosts: effects of dosage, spore source and host age

Parasitology ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 134 (12) ◽  
pp. 1719-1726 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. T. RUTRECHT ◽  
J. KLEE ◽  
M. J. F. BROWN
Keyword(s):  
Bombus Terrestris ◽  
Horizontal Transmission ◽  
Fold Increase ◽  
Population Heterogeneity ◽  
Host Susceptibility ◽  
Bumble Bee ◽  
Host Age ◽  
Transmission Success ◽  
Nosema Bombi ◽  
Evolutionary Epidemiology

SUMMARYParasite transmission dynamics are fundamental to explaining the evolutionary epidemiology of disease because transmission and virulence are tightly linked. Horizontal transmission of microsporidian parasites, e.g. Nosema bombi, may be influenced by numerous factors, including inoculation dose, host susceptibility and host population heterogeneity. Despite previous studies of N. bombi and its bumble bee hosts, neither the epidemiology nor impact of the parasite are as yet understood. Here we investigate the influence N. bombi spore dosage (1000 to 500 000 spores), spore source (Bombus terrestris and B. lucorum isolates) and host age (2- and 10-day-old bees) have on disease establishment and the presence of patent infections in adult bumble bees. Two-day-old bees were twice as susceptible as their 10-day-old sisters, and a 5-fold increase in dosage from 100 000 to 500 000 spores resulted in a 20-fold increase in the prevalence of patent infections. While intraspecific inoculations were 3 times more likely to result in non-patent infections there was no such effect on the development of patent infections. These results suggest that host-age and dose are likely to play a role in N. bombi's evolutionary epidemiology. The relatively low levels of horizontal transmission success are suggestive of low virulence in this system.

Drifting bumble bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) workers in commercial greenhouses may be social parasites

2004 ◽  
Vol 82 (12) ◽  
pp. 1843-1853 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna L Birmingham ◽  
Shelley E Hoover ◽  
Mark L Winston ◽  
Ron C Ydenberg
Keyword(s):  
Social Insect ◽  
Social Parasitism ◽  
Worker Reproduction ◽  
Bumble Bee ◽  
Nectar Robbing ◽  
Social Parasites ◽  
Aggressive Interactions ◽  
Insect Societies ◽  
Bombus Occidentalis ◽  
Behavioural Consequence

Commercial greenhouses require high densities of managed bumble bee (Bombus occidentalis Greene, 1858 and Bombus impatiens Cresson, 1863) colonies to pollinate crops such as tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum Miller). We examined drifting, a behavioural consequence of introducing closely aggregated colonies into greenhouse habitats, to determine possible explanations for observed drifting frequencies. Bee drift is normally associated with increased individual mortality and disease transfer between colonies. In this study, individual bees frequently drifted into and remained within foreign colonies. More drifting bees were found in colonies with higher worker and brood populations and greater pollen stores. Increased intracolony aggressive interactions were not associated with a higher number of drifting bees. Drifting bees had a significantly greater number of mature eggs in their ovaries than did resident worker bees residing in colonies hosting drifters, suggesting that drifting could potentially increase the fitness of individual worker bees and may not be solely a function of disorientation and (or) nectar robbing. Taken together, our results suggest that drifting of workers into foreign colonies within greenhouses may demonstrate a predisposition to social parasitism. This selfish worker reproduction challenges our previous understanding of social insect societies as being cooperative societies.

Intraspecific nest and brood recognition by queens of the bumble bee, Bombus occidentalis (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

1987 ◽  
Vol 65 (12) ◽  
pp. 2893-2897 ◽  
Author(s):  
George J. Gamboa ◽  
Robin L. Foster ◽  
Kenneth W. Richards
Keyword(s):  
Bumble Bee ◽  
Matched Pairs ◽  
Bombus Occidentalis ◽  
Brood Recognition ◽  
Thermoregulatory Behaviour ◽  
Observation Period

Queens of pre-emergence colonies of the bumble bee, Bombus occidentalis, discriminated between their own nest or brood and that of an unrelated conspecific queen in the field. In particular, behavioural observations of queens from 11 matched pairs of replaced nests (controls) and switched nests (treatments) revealed that queens spent significantly more time in thermoregulatory behaviour (incubating and covering brood), and initiated such behaviours significantly sooner, with their own brood than with unrelated (foreign) brood. Queens also spent significantly more time inspecting foreign brood than their own brood. Finally, queens returning to foreign nests were significantly more likely to depart during the observation period than queens returning to their own nest. Although queens recognized unrelated nests or brood, they were not observed to destroy unrelated brood. Rather, in most cases they adopted foreign nests containing unrelated worker-destined brood, and remained with these nests for the life of the colonies.

Are bumble bee colonies in tomato greenhouses obtaining adequate nutrition?

2003 ◽  
Vol 135 (6) ◽  
pp. 883-892 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robin Whittington ◽  
Mark L. Winston
Keyword(s):  
Adult Mortality ◽  
Bumble Bees ◽  
Bumble Bee ◽  
Brood Production ◽  
Adequate Nutrition ◽  
Brood Rearing ◽  
Greenhouse Crops ◽  
Bombus Occidentalis ◽  
Drone Production ◽  
Bee Colonies

AbstractManaged bumble bees are important pollinators of greenhouse crops, but few studies have examined factors that affect the health and productivity of commercially produced colonies. We investigated whether supplemental feeding with diverse pollens affected worker longevity and colony size of Bombus occidentalis Greene (Hymenoptera: Apidae) colonies in tomato (Solanaceae) greenhouses. We found no differences in colony worker populations, brood production, or queen and drone production between supplemented and nonsupplemented treatments, suggesting that B. occidentalis colonies obtain adequate nutrition from the tomato pollen available in greenhouses. Adult populations did not increase in any treatment, but either remained stable or declined after colonies were placed in greenhouses. Because brood-rearing increased in all treatments but adult populations did not, adult mortality due to a non-nutritional factor such as disease or disorientation appears to be an important problem limiting the size of bumble bee colonies, and thus the effectiveness of bumble bees for greenhouse tomato pollination.

scholarly journals Nosema bombi(Microsporidia: Nosematidae) and Trypanosomatid Prevalence in Spring Bumble Bee Queens (Hymenoptera: Apidae:Bombus) in Kansas

2014 ◽  
Vol 87 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amber D. Tripodi ◽  
Ximena Cibils-Stewart ◽  
Brian P. McCornack ◽  
Allen L. Szalanski
Keyword(s):  
Bumble Bee ◽  
Nosema Bombi

Observations of native bumble bees inside of commercial colonies ofBombus impatiens(Hymenoptera: Apidae) and the potential for pathogen spillover

2018 ◽  
Vol 150 (4) ◽  
pp. 520-531 ◽  
Author(s):  
B.J. Hicks ◽  
B.L. Pilgrim ◽  
E. Perry ◽  
H.D. Marshall
Keyword(s):  
Newfoundland And Labrador ◽  
Bumble Bees ◽  
Bumble Bee ◽  
Native Bees ◽  
Chain Reaction ◽  
Nosema Bombi ◽  
Crithidia Bombi ◽  
Native Bee ◽  
Bee Diversity ◽  
Polymerase Chain

AbstractMany fruit producers use commercial colonies ofBombus impatiensCresson (Hymenoptera: Apidae) to supplement crop pollination by native bees. A small number of Newfoundland (Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada) farmers forego purchasing new colonies and, instead, purchase previously used colonies from crops in other provinces. This practice has potentially dangerous implications that may adversely affect future native bee diversity in Newfoundland. This study is the first to record the presence of native bumble bee species inside the colonies of new and pre-used commercialB. impatiensand the first to look at diseases in native bumble bees from Newfoundland. Polymerase chain reaction and taxon-specific oligonucleotides were used to screen the commercial and native bumble bee species for pathogens.Crithidia bombi(Lipa and Triggiani), Apicystis bombi(Liu, Macfarlane, and Pengelly),Nosema bombiFantham and Porter, Nosema ceranaeFrieset al., and species ofAscosphaeraOlive and Spiltoir, were detected in native bumble bees that were collected from inside the new and pre-used commercialB. impatiens.Crithidia bombi,A. bombi, andN. bombiwere also detected among native bees that were collected away from the commercial colonies.Nosema apis(Zander) andMelissococcus plutonius(White) were not detected in any of the bees tested. The mixing of native bumble bees inB. impatienscolonies increases the potential for pathogen spillover and spillback that may threaten the small and vulnerable island bee fauna.

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