Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Food

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A scientific note on ‘Rapid brood decapping’—a method for assessment of honey bee (Apis mellifera) brood infestation with Tropilaelaps mercedesae
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2025-03-20)
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Janashia, Irakli
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Chen, Chao
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Costa, Cecilia
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Kovačić, Marin
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Standard methods for rearing and selection of Apis mellifera queens 2.0
(Taylor and Francis (United Kingdom), 2024-03-19)
Büchler, Ralph
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Bernstein, Richard
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Bienefeld, Kaspar
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Costa, Cecilia
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Standard methods for rearing and selection of Apis mellifera queens 2.0
(Informa UK Limited, 2024-03-19)
Büchler, Ralph
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Bernstein, Richard
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Bienefeld, Kaspar
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Costa, Cecilia
Here, we cover a wide range of methods currently in use and recommended in modern queen rearing, selection, and breeding. The recommendations are meant to serve as standards for scientific and practical beekeeping purposes. The basic conditions and different management techniques for queen rearing are described, including recommendations for suitable technical equipment. As the success of breeding programmes strongly depends on the selective mating of queens, a subsection is dedicated to the management and quality control of mating stations. Recommendations for the handling and quality control of queens complete the queen rearing section. The improvement of colony traits usually depends on a comparative testing of colonies. Standardised recommendations for the organisation of performance tests and the measurement of the most common selection characters are presented. Statistical methods and data preconditions for the estimation of breeding values that integrate pedigree and performance data from as many colonies as possible are described as the most efficient selection method for large populations. Alternative breeding programmes for small populations or certain scientific questions are briefly mentioned, including an overview of the young and fast developing field of molecular selection tools. Because the subject of queen rearing and selection is too large to be covered within this paper, ample references are given to facilitate comprehensive studies.
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Standard methods for rearing and selection of Apis mellifera queens 2.0
(Informa UK Limited, 2024-03-19)
Büchler, Ralph
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Bernstein, Richard
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Bienefeld, Kaspar
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Costa, Cecilia
Here, we cover a wide range of methods currently in use and recommended in modern queen rearing, selection, and breeding. The recommendations are meant to serve as standards for scientific and practical beekeeping purposes. The basic conditions and different management techniques for queen rearing are described, including recommendations for suitable technical equipment. As the success of breeding programmes strongly depends on the selective mating of queens, a subsection is dedicated to the management and quality control of mating stations. Recommendations for the handling and quality control of queens complete the queen rearing section. The improvement of colony traits usually depends on a comparative testing of colonies. Standardised recommendations for the organisation of performance tests and the measurement of the most common selection characters are presented. Statistical methods and data preconditions for the estimation of breeding values that integrate pedigree and performance data from as many colonies as possible are described as the most efficient selection method for large populations. Alternative breeding programmes for small populations or certain scientific questions are briefly mentioned, including an overview of the young and fast-developing field of molecular selection tools. Because the subject of queen rearing and selection is too large to be covered within this paper, ample references are given to facilitate comprehensive studies.
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Economic aspects of honey bee queen breeding: insights from a European study
(Informa UK Limited, 2024-06-14)
Dimitrov, Lazo
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Costa, Cecilia
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Meixner, Marina D.
In 2017, the European Commission initiated the EurBeST study to explore the possibilities of using selective breeding of honey bees to increase Varroa resistance traits. One of the specific aims of the study was to assess the process of honey bee queen breeding through an economic analysis. The methodology for calculating the costs of queen production (queen rearing and mating), colony evaluation and expenses for estimating breeding values is based on the Cost of Production (CoP). Cost data were collected via tailor-made questionnaires and interviews performed in five European countries (France, Germany, Greece, Italy, and Poland). The sample population consisted of 20 queen producers and 20 performance testers who participated in the study. The results showed that the average costs for queen production amounted to 22.58 per queen, ranging from 8.22 in Poland to 37.30 in France. The difference between the selling price and the production cost was on average 3.08 per queen, ranging from 15.86 in Germany to -12.30 in France. On average, the colony evaluation costs were 193.40 per colony. The average cost for breeding value estimation per queen was 8.09 . Thus, the average total cost per selected queen was 224 . The selective breeding of honey bees is an efficient way to increase productivity, reduce colony losses, improve bee health and enable profitable operations, but it is expensive, is usually promoted, practiced and implemented by scientists and researchers, and in most cases is financed by external sources.
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Apis florea in Europe: first report of the dwarf honey bee in Malta
(Informa UK Limited, 2024-08-21)
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Galea, Thomas
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Chen, Chao
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Cilia, Giovanni
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Costa, Cecilia
The Red dwarf honey bee (Apis florea), is a single-comb open-nesting member of the genus Apis with a natural distribution area stretching from the Indomalayan realm on the east to the Persian Gulf on the west. However, it is reportedly colonising new territories mainly due to anthropogenic activities. Nowadays it can be found from Taiwan on the east, to Jordan, the Arabian Peninsula and North-eastern Africa on the west. Here we present the first scientific record of a fully established colony of A. florea in Europe. The colony was found on Malta, a crossway of naval routes in the Mediterranean Sea. We documented the incident with photos, collected samples of workers and drones and sequenced the mtDNA COI gene to confirm assignment to A. florea. Also, we alert the competent authorities and the beekeeping community to be vigilant and ready to undertake effective eradication measures. In the paper, we discuss the risks and the potential consequences associated with the invasion of A. florea in Europe.
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First Report on Tropilaelaps Mercedesae Presence in Georgia: The Mite is Heading Westward!
(Walter de Gruyter GmbH, 2024-12-01)
Janashia, Irakli
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Chen, Chao
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Costa, Cecilia
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Cilia, Giovanni
The Tropilaelaps spp. (Mesostigmata: Laelapidae), an ectoparasitic mite originally associated with such Asian giant honey bees as Apis dorsata, A. breviligula and A. laboriosa, has increasingly become a focus of global concern due to its severe effects on Western honey bee colonies (Apis mellifera) and its recent geographic expansion. This study documents the first reported presence of Tropilaelaps mercedesae in Western Georgia's Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region, specifically in seven honey bee colonies (A. mellifera caucasica) from three apiaries. We conducted brood sample inspections, DNA barcoding and morphological measurements to confirm mite identification. Our findings revealed high infestation rates of T. mercedesae, co-infestation with Varroa destructor and notable mite reproductive success. These results underscore the threat posed by T. mercedesae to Georgian apiculture and highlight the potential for further spread across Europe. Immediate action and vigilant monitoring by national and international authorities are crucial to mitigate the impact on beekeeping and agriculture.
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Deciphering the variation in cuticular hydrocarbon profiles of six European honey bee subspecies
(Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2024-10-28)
Rodríguez-León, Daniel Sebastián
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Costa, Cecilia
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Elen, Dylan
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Charistos, Leonidas
The Western honey bee (Apis mellifera) subspecies exhibit local adaptive traits that evolved in response to the different environments that characterize their native distribution ranges. An important trait is the cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) profile, which helps to prevent desiccation and mediate communication. We compared the CHC profiles of six European subspecies (A. m. mellifera, A. m. carnica, A. m. ligustica, A. m. macedonica, A. m. iberiensis, and A. m. ruttneri) and investigated potential factors shaping their composition. We did not find evidence of adaptation of the CHC profiles of the subspecies to the climatic conditions in their distribution range. Subspecies-specific differences in CHC composition might be explained by phylogenetic constraints or genetic drift. The CHC profiles of foragers were more subspecies-specific than those of nurse bees, while the latter showed more variation in their CHC profiles, likely due to the lower desiccation stress exerted by the controlled environment inside the hive. The strongest profile differences appeared between nurse bees and foragers among all subspecies, suggesting an adaptation to social task and a role in communication. Foragers also showed an increase in the relative amount of alkanes in their profiles compared to nurses, indicating adaptation to climatic conditions.
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Give Varroa a Chance!
(Informa UK Limited, 2022-09-29)
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Costa, Cecilia
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Kovačić, Marin
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Modeling honey yield, defensive and swarming behaviors of Italian honey bees (Apis mellifera ligustica) using linear-threshold approaches
(2019-10-21)
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Costa, Cecilia
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Bergomi, Patrizia
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Lourenco, Daniela
Genetic improvement of honey bees is more difficult compared to other livestock, due to the very different reproductive behavior. Estimation of breeding values requires specific adjustment and the use of sires in the pedigree is only possible when mating of queens and drones is strictly controlled. In the breeding program of the National Registry for Italian Queen Breeders and Bee Producers the paternal contribution is mostly unknown. As stronger modeling may compensate for the lack of pedigree information, we tested two models that differed in the way the direct and maternal effects were considered. The two models were tested using 4003 records for honey yield, defensive and swarming behaviors of Italian honey bee queens produced between 2002 and 2014. The first model accounted for the direct genetic effect of worker bees and the genetic maternal effect of the queen, whereas model 2 considered the direct genetic effect of the queen without maternal effect. The analyses were performed by linear (honey production) and threshold (defensive and swarming behavior) single-trait models; estimated genetic correlations among traits were obtained by a three-trait linear-threshold model.

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