Heavy losses are not confined to North America and Europe

> China has six million bee colonies and about two hundred thousand beekeepers. Two Apis species (the western honeybees, Apis mellifera, and the eastern honeybees, Apis cerana) are raised in the country; both are bred for bee products (honey, royal jelly, propolis, beeswax) as well as for agricultural pollination. In recent years, beekeepers have been being confronted with several inexplicable and complex symptoms of colony losses on both Apis species. Although some of the losses are long known as a result of the damage of Varroa mites on Apis mellifera, sacbrood viruses on Apis cerana and Tropilaelaps mites on both species. Other less known factors and mechanisms need to be investigated.

> One factor in the success of AHBs seems to be higher levels of resistance toward mites and pathogens. Understanding the mechanisms for this resistance is important for the continued health of South American beekeeping and could provide more general insights for bee breeding programs. After many years of low disease presence, honey bee populations in parts of Brazil, and especially the southeast region, have shown declines in the past five years, severely impacting beekeepers. These losses are at least superficially similar to enigmatic colony mortality recently seen in the US (e.g., ‘‘Colony Collapse Disorder” or CCD and Europe.

references available on request

-- 
Peter Loring Borst
Ithaca, NY  USA
+42.347999,-76.495239&

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