During flower blooming season (Four months) I have performed experiment w.r.t pollen collection using pollen traps in Honey bee , Apis mellifera colonies. The colony parameters like Honey , Nectar, Stored Pollen, Egg, open and sealed brood were counted using square inch counting frame. The number and proportion of pollen loaded foragers entering into colonies were also recorded during different times in a day. One of the objective of the research was to select colonies as High and low pollen hoarding colonies. In general, what is the appropriate criteria for selecting colonies as high and low pollen hoarders ? Is pollen consumption by a colony an important criteria to ascertain them as good pollen hoarders?
Thanks in advance
Hello Pardeep,
According to Mackensen & Nye (1966), their selection of high an low lines collecting alfalfa pollen was based upon a survey of incoming pollen foragers, similar to your study. I find this however too vague for being a heritable trait for selection, and I do not know any other literature suggesting this. I would rather rely on either (i) the total amount/weight of pollen collected (via pollen trap/defined time period) or (ii) via repeated measuring of stored pollen using the Liebefeld method. Accoring to the above mentioned study, the authors say that a selection was effective within four generations. I have much doubt however, if this is possible at all because the cascade on which collecting pollen is triggered within a bee society is extremely complex. Any other opinions on this would be interesting...
Related literature:
Article Selecting and Breeding Honeybees for Collecting Alfalfa Pollen
- https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.de/&httpsredir=1&article=1261&context=piru_pubs
- https://books.google.de/books?id=MyTgBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA168&lpg=PA168&dq=selection+pollen+collectors&source=bl&ots=agoGe_Vcs2&sig=tWe0Q5Ej0kWXyBJK8lAtpSH84og&hl=de&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjHzrL1ppXeAhXN4IUKHeQkDPIQ6AEwCHoECAIQAQ#v=onepage&q=selection%20pollen%20collectors&f=false
Article Überprüfung der Schätzmethode zur Ermittlung der Brutfläche ...
Thank you @Richard Odemer for sharing valuable information and enlightening me
According to my understanding and experience the amount and rate of a honeybee hive pollen collection relate to the hive brood amount and to the hive strength (number of the hive field worker bees). Pollen gathering rate of a hive can be measured by counting the absolute number (and not the proportion) of the incoming pollen foragers. Using pollen traps is less accurate, and also interrupts the hive.
re. the alfalfa results: I would caution that alfalfa is an unusual flower structure for Apis mellifera and some stocks avoid collecting alfalfa pollen (which is why we use lafcutter bees to pollinate alfalfa). Results from alfalfa pollen foraging may be useful, but probably cannot be generalised to pollen hoarding.
Trapping pollen from a hive for extended periods of time seems to cause the bees to recruit more pollen foragers to make up for their losses. Anecdotally, I have seen colonies with pollen traps more than triple the amount of pollen they collect in a little over a week. That being said, I don't think there have been studies confirming this phenomenon, but it could be something to consider if you want to use pollen traps.
RE Page 1995 and before him, RL Hellmich 1985 selected bees with high and low pollen hoarding traits, resulting in huge effects in three to five generation. Both authors describe their method in details. Removing pollen from any colony, will stimulate further pollen hoarding, until the stores are adequately filled. S Nørgaard Holm 1977 got fast success selecting bees that prefer White clover pollen. Good luck