Evaluation of Ten Supplemental Diets to Enhance Some Honey Bee (Apis mellifera L.) Activities during Winter Season in Egypt.

Younis, Mohamed S.

doi:10.21608/eajbsa.2019.67045

Evaluation of Ten Supplemental Diets to Enhance Some Honey Bee (Apis mellifera L.) Activities during Winter Season in Egypt.

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Mohamed S. Younis

Bee Research Department, Plant Protection Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center

10.21608/eajbsa.2019.67045

Abstract

This work was carried out at the apiary of Bee Research Department, Quanter branch, Qaluobia governorate during the period from December 2016 to April 2017 to evaluate the effect of feeding honeybee colonies with ten diets as pollen substitutes on diets consumption rates, brood rearing, pollen and honey storage activities. Six Proteinaceous materials were used as follows; defatted soybean flour, chickpea flour, maize flour, pea flour, wheat germ and dried brewer's yeast, were mixed with sugar powder, bee honey and water in different proportions forming ten diets taking letters from A to J. The obtained results revealed that colonies were fed on Diet H (chickpea flour + wheat germ + dried brewer's yeast) produced the highest average of biological activities, which were 105.54 g, 363.75 inch², 134.83 inch² and 404.08 inch²/colony for diet consumption, sealed workers brood area, stored pollen area and stored honey area, respectively. On the contrary, the colonies fed on Diet C (pea flour + defatted soybean flour + dried brewer's yeast) produced the lowest average of biological activities, which were 77.0 g., 235.1 inch², 75.43 inch² and 258.39 inch²/colony for diet consumption, sealed workers brood area, stored pollen area and stored honey area, respectively. There were a direct relationship between diets consumption and each of brood rearing, pollen and honey storage activities during winter season compared with control colonies, which showed a noticeable decrease in all of these biological activities.

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