Journal article
Lipid-enhanced pollen and lipid-reduced flour diets and their effect on the longevity of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.)
Australian Journal of Entomology, Vol.46(3), pp.251-257
08/2007
Abstract
As eucalypt pollens contain low concentrations of lipid, enhancing pollen diets with fatty acids was hypothesised to improve honey bee longevity. Different concentrations of linoleic and oleic acid added to eucalypt pollen were trialled in small cages containing approximately 1400 bees each. Bees fed diets of redgum (Corymbia calophylla (Lindl.) Hill & Johnson, formerly Eucalyptus calophylla) pollen had the lowest mortality of 22 diets tested for 6 weeks and had life spans (50%) greater than 42 days. Linoleic acid mixed with a redgum diet in concentrations >6% corresponded to life spans of 24-25 days. Bee longevity appeared to be more sensitive to oleic acid as life spans decreased to 15-21 days when diets had concentrations >2%. The life spans of bees fed soya bean flour were 26 days on low (0.6% lipid) fat, 19 days on defatted and 20 days on full-fat diets. Bees fed lupin flour had a life span of 23 days. Adding redgum pollen to lupin flour caused increased mortality, but addition of pollen to soya bean flour was beneficial. Thus, beekeepers who choose to utilise soya bean or lupin flours as protein substitutes to pollen will have bees with reduced longevity. Bees fed redgum pollen that had been dried, crushed, irradiated and hermetically stored in a cool room for several years had similar longevity to bees fed fresh-collected and frozen redgum pollen.
Details
- Title
- Lipid-enhanced pollen and lipid-reduced flour diets and their effect on the longevity of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.)
- Authors/Creators
- R. Manning (Author/Creator) - Agriculture and FoodA. Rutkay (Author/Creator) - Data Analysis Australia Pty Ltd, Nedlands, WA 6009, AustraliaL. Eaton (Author/Creator) - Data Analysis Australia Pty Ltd, Nedlands, WA 6009, AustraliaB. Dell (Author/Creator) - Murdoch University
- Publication Details
- Australian Journal of Entomology, Vol.46(3), pp.251-257
- Publisher
- Blackwell Publishing
- Identifiers
- 991005540454507891
- Copyright
- © 2007 The Authors.
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
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- Citation topics
- 3 Agriculture, Environment & Ecology
- 3.32 Entomology
- 3.32.750 Bee Ecology
- Web Of Science research areas
- Entomology
- ESI research areas
- Plant & Animal Science