2005 Annual Report 1.What major problem or issue is being resolved and how are you resolving it (summarize project aims and objectives)? How serious is the problem? What does it matter? Varroa destructor, an external parasitic mite of the honey bee, is the most significant production problem for the nation’s beekeeping industry. Varroa mites have spread to all the mainland states since they were first discovered in North America nearly 20 years ago. Mites spread rapidly between colonies, and infested colonies historically died. Infestation debilitates colonies to the degree that production losses occur in the first year of infestation. Losses include the colonies themselves, lost honey production and pollination, costs associated with the time and labor required to replace colonies, and costs of acaricides and their application. Mites develop resistance to chemicals quickly, and few chemicals are registered and available for mite control. Some beekeeping areas have mite populations that are resistant to the acaricides commonly used for mite control. A second imported parasitic mite, Acarapis woodi, is the number two production problem for the beekeeping industry. This mite infests the respiratory tracheae of adult honey bees and by feeding and interfering with respiration, debilitates and kills individual worker bees. Cumulative effects are often most intense in honey bee colonies during the winter when they can cause the death of significant numbers of colonies. A third colony pest, the small hive beetle (SHB), Aethina tumida, has killed many colonies since its discovery in the United States in 1998. Larval SHB damage colonies as they feed on bee brood, pollen and honey. Strong colonies can be overwhelmed by high levels of SHB infestation. To reduce SHB infestations, coumaphos and permethrin are used as a colony treatment and soil drench, respectively. However, these chemicals provide only partial control. A fourth problem area is crop pollination. Beekeeping losses because of parasitic mites have resulted in fewer beekeepers and fewer colonies of honey bees nationwide. Concurrently, populations of feral honey bees have declined dramatically because of mite parasitism. This has resulted in an increased need for rental colonies to pollinate crops. Changing agricultural practices, including new plant varieties and species, require continual examination of current pollination requirements to assure optimum production of seed, fruit, vegetable, oil and fiber crops. We are developing a stock of honey bees imported from far-eastern Russia which has substantial resistance to the varroa mite and excellent resistance to the tracheal mite. Honey bee queens imported from Russia through quarantine were used to create colonies which were tested individually, and the best of these are tested in a multi-state field trial. The colonies are evaluated for resistance to each parasitic mite, honey production and overwintering ability. The best lines are included in a breeding program designed to allow further improvement for the important economic traits but also to prevent inbreeding which is highly detrimental to honey bees. Identification of specific resistant traits to both parasitic mites is ongoing so that the genetics of resistance can be studied in detail. Pollination studies are being conducted comparing the pollination effectiveness of Russian and Italian honey bee stocks on several crops. Studies include foraging at varied temperatures, colony survival when under moving stress and other characteristics that determine the overall value of a bee stock for commercial pollination. The comparative foraging of the two stocks, as well as the effect of honey bee pollination on cotton quality and quantity, are being compared on upland cotton. 2.List the milestones (indicators of progress) from your Project Plan. A. Test, propagate and release Russian breeder lines according to a schedule organized according to groups of breeder queens. B. Conduct a long-term evaluation of the varroa resistance of Russian honey bees in a reduced acaricide test, and evaluate questions concerning Russian honey bee management. C. Evaluate Russian honey bee mechanisms of resistance to varroa mites. D. Develop simplified measurements of varroa mite population growth. E. Determine varroa mite population growth in contrasting climates. F. Determine whether the basis of Russian honey bee resistance to tracheal mites is auto-grooming. G. Determine the genetics of resistance to tracheal mites in Russian honey bees. H. Compare Russian and Italian colonies to determine potentials for resistance to small hive beetle. I. Determine genetic variation in foraging traits that result in crop pollination that can be exploited or improved in Russian honey bees and develop management techniques for useful improvements. J. Use molecular techniques to identify Russian honey bees and their presence in feral populations of honey bees. 4a.What was the single most significant accomplishment this past year? Full complement of Russian bee breeder lines released to the beekeeping industry The program target of 18 breeder queen lines now has been commercially released after a decade of testing to identify useful lines. This closed population is a genetically diverse group of bees that are resistant to varroa and tracheal mites, have good honey production, and have been screened against problems such as excessive defensiveness and susceptibility to chalkbrood disease. The availability of a full complement of lines means that the stock has reduced risk of detrimental inbreeding. Program emphasis now has shifted to intensified selection within the breeder lines for improved apicultural traits. 4b.List other significant accomplishments, if any. Low growth of varroa populations in Russian bee colonies is regulated by a variety of mechanisms. Three seasons of evaluation of population growth of varroa mites found growth rates in Russian colonies that consistently were manifold lower than those in Italian colonies. This slower growth rate was supported by lower percentages of infested worker and drone brood cells, lower frequency of brood cells infested with multiple mites, lower mite reproduction and an extended phoretic period. 4c.List any significant activities that support special target populations. Almost every beekeeper in the United States and many crop growers that benefit from pollination by honey bees are members of target populations. 4d.Progress report. A subordinate project is a cooperative program with Alabama A & M University that has the objective of determining the utility of USDA, ARS-developed, mite resistant honey bees for beekeepers in Alabama. Russian honey bees and Suppressed Mite Reproduction (SMR) honey bees plus a commercial Alabama bee stock are being compared for the need for acaricide treatment, and for honey production. Colonies were established in Spring 2004 and are being managed by eight cooperating beekeepers. Data to this point show that Russian and SMR stocks performed relatively well in resisting infestation by varroa and tracheal mites. Queen survival was variable, with Russian queens performing best. However, it was not possible to ascribe poor queen survival to genetics versus to environmental factors such as poor matings of queens. This project is ongoing. A subordinate project is a cooperative program with Louisiana State University to determine the impact of the releases of Russian and SMR honey bees. A survey has been created, beta tested and distributed to the nation's beekeepers. The survey results are currently being compiled. 5.Describe the major accomplishments over the life of the project, including their predicted or actual impact. The accomplishment, “Russian honey bee resistance to varroa mites is enhanced in apiaries having only Russian colonies”, is a major milestone for section 1.1 of the project plan. This accomplishment was transferred to industry by publication in a trade journal and various talks to beekeeping groups. Using this knowledge will allow scientists in this unit and elsewhere, and beekeepers to better assess the varroa mite resistance of Russian honey bees and benefit commercially, respectively. The accomplishment, “Honey bees collect large amounts of upland cotton pollen in Louisiana”, is a major milestone for section 3 of the project plan. This accomplishment is currently being underpinned with further research. When technology transfer takes place, at least some cotton growers and beekeepers renting colonies for pollination will benefit commercially. The accomplishment, “Washing honey bees in soapy water results in efficient evaluations of varroa mite infestations”, is a major milestone for section 2.3 of the project plan. This accomplishment was transferred via a publication in a trade journal and several talks at beekeeper meetings. Using this technique will allow scientists in this unit and elsewhere, and beekeepers, to much more effectively monitor varroa mite populations in their colonies. The accomplishment, “Full complement of Russian bee breeder lines released to the beekeeping industry”, is a major milestone for hypothesis 1.1 of the project plan. A status report of the breeding program was delivered in a publication in the major trade journal, and was described at meetings of national and state beekeeping groups. The availability of the entire breeding pool means that the desirable traits of Russian honey bees now can be used with diminished risk of inbreeding problems. In addition to extending the useful life of the stock, this is important for the research program because it allows further selection and improvement of the breeding lines. The accomplishment, “Low growth of varroa populations in Russian bee colonies is regulated by a variety of mechanisms”, significantly addresses hypothesis 2.1 of the project plan. Knowledge of the relative importance of mechanisms supporting varroa resistance permits more targeted selection of traits for enhancing resistance. The majority of the current and future research of this project involves refining Russian honey bees as a commercially valuable stock, and studying various traits of the bees to enhance that refinement. The 18 queen lines now commercially available will be genetically selected to retain and further improve several important economic traits: resistance to varroa, resistance to tracheal mites, overwintering ability and honey production. Other research in the project will study aspects such as mechanisms of resistance to parasitic mites, responses to small hive beetles, value in commercial pollination enterprises, their spread into feral populations of honey bees and ways to use honey bee management to best enhance these economically important traits in Russian and other honey bee stocks. 6.What science and/or technologies have been transferred and to whom? When is the science and/or technology likely to become available to the end-user (industry, farmer, other scientists)? What are the constraints, if known, to the adoption and durability of the technology products? Russian honey bee breeder lines were transferred to the beekeeping industry through a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with Harper Apiaries. Other ARS scientists in Tucson, AZ, and Weslaco, TX, received experimental queens from Baton Rouge, LA. Although, the Russian honey bee breeding program is making stock available to the beekeeping industry, the breeding program is ongoing. Selection within retained breeder lines is now more intense and is expected to produce a stock with higher and less variable expression of traits. Many producers of “Russian queens” for sale to the public are not mating the queens in places that have drones from Russian colonies. Hence, they are actually selling queens that produce hybrid colonies that likely show high variability and sometimes show undesirable traits such as being sting-prone. These hybrid products have been rejected by some customers, many of whom are seeking sources of “pure bred” Russian stock. Although, more queen breeders are developing businesses based on “pure bred” stock, it is clear that the demand currently far exceeds supply. Information about using only resistant stock in apiaries and washing bees with soapy water on a mechanical shaker has been transferred to other scientists and beekeepers by publications in a trade journal and talks at beekeeper meetings. All beekeepers should be able to easily establish apiaries with only one type of stock. Only some beekeepers monitor levels of varroa in their colonies and may have problems developing mechanical shakers. More information about what mite levels can be considered triggers for treatment of resistant stock is needed before most beekeepers would consider using the technique to monitor levels of varroa. Under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), Backwood Apiaries currently offers tests for tracheal mite resistance of commercial queens. The unit provides resistant and susceptible queens to be used as standard references. A laboratory field day was held on Saturday, October 9, 2004, for about 100 beekeepers from the region. Beekeeping and research activities were shown ranging from simple for beginners to complex for commercial operators and specialized hobbyists. Project staff made approximately one dozen presentations to state beekeeping associations. 7.List your most important publications in the popular press and presentations to organizations and articles written about your work. (NOTE: List your peer reviewed publications below). Peabody, E. 2004. Bees that resist mites are busy groomers. Agric. Res. 52:21. Presentations about various aspects of the project were delivered by several staff to the two major national beekeeping organizations (American Honey Producers Association, American Beekeeping Federation) at annual meetings. Entomological Society of America meeting. November 14-17, 2004. An Evaluation of Russian Honey Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) for their Resistance Potential to Small Hive Beetles (Coleoptera: Nitudilidae). Scientific Publications: Gregory P. G., Evans J. D., Rinderer T., de Guzman L. 2005. Conditional immune-gene suppression of honeybees parasitized by Varroa mites. Journal of Insect Science. 5:7. available online: insectscience.org/5.7 Review Publications Kavinseksan, B., Wongsiri, S., Rinderer, T.E., De Guzman, L.I. 2004. Comparison of the Hygenic Behavior of ARS Russian Commercial Honey Bees in Thailand. American Bee Journal 144(11):870-872. Chaiyawong, T., Deowanish, S., Wongsiri, S., Sylvester, H.A., Rinderer, T.E., De Guzman, L.I. 2004. Multivariate Morphometric Study of Apis Florea in Thailand. Journal of Apicultural Research. 43(3):123-127. Cargel, R.A., Rinderer, T.E., 2004. Unusual queen cell construction and destruction in Apis mellifera from far-eastern Russia. Journal of Apicultural Research. 43(4):188-190. Rinderer, T.E., De Guzman, L.I., Danka, R.G. 2005. A new phase begins for the usda-ars russian honey bee breeding program. American Bee Journal 145(7):579-582. Fassbinder Orth, C.A., Rinderer, T.E. 2005. A study of chalkbrood susceptibility in russian and domestic honey bees. American Bee Journal 145(8):669-671