Study on the thermoregulation of the honeybee colony

(A. mellifera) in winter

Authors

  • Tamás Szalai Szent István University, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Institute of Nature Conservation and Landscape Management, H-2100 Gödöllő, Páter Károly Str. 1., Hungary
  • Gábor Loksa Lakitelek Népfőiskola, H-6065 Lakitelek, Felsőalpár 3., Hungary
  • Krisztina Pintér Szent István University, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Institute of Botany and Ecophysiology, H-2100 Gödöllő, Páter Károly Str. 1., Hungary
  • Dániel Szalai Szent István University, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Institute of Nature Conservation and Landscape Management, H-2100 Gödöllő, Páter Károly Str. 1., Hungary
  • Dénes Saláta Szent István University, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Institute of Nature Conservation and Landscape Management, H-2100 Gödöllő, Páter Károly Str. 1., Hungary

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17205/SZIE.AWETH.2015.2.154

Keywords:

apiculture, colony, wintering, thermoregulation

Abstract

The thermoregulation of the honeybee colony in most countries in the moderate climate is essential for the overwintering. The winter cluster can survive under hard climatic and meteorological conditions. There are many studies on the individual bee and colony behaviour, however the influence of the environment and temperature need further observations. Between 5 December and 26 February 2012/13, at Gödöllő we studied the temperature of the environment and the colony with 30 and 15 minutes frequency. During the whole period the mean temperature inside and outside the colony was 22,5 and -0,66 °C, respectively. Clear relation was found between the winter cluster- and outside temperature. Similar trends could be followed when the outside temperature rose in the colony at different intervals. Due to temperature rises or mechanical disturbances the success of overwintering may decrease. High frequency temperature recordings can help to understand the reaction and behaviour of the colonies through the environmental adaptation process.

Author Biography

  • Tamás Szalai, Szent István University, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Institute of Nature Conservation and Landscape Management, H-2100 Gödöllő, Páter Károly Str. 1., Hungary

    corresponding author
    Szalai.Tamas@mkk.szie.hu

References

Fahrenholz, L., Lamprecht, I., Schricker, B. (1989): Thermal investigations of a honey bee colony. J. Comp. Physiol. B., 159. 551–560. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00694379

Hammer, O. (1999–2015): PAST – PAleontological STatictics Version 3.06 Reference Manual. Natural History Museum, University of Oslo.

Hammer, O., Harper, D.A.T., Ryan, P. D. (2001): PAST – Paleontological Statistics Software Package for Education and Data Analysis. Palaeontologia Electronica, 4(1) 1–9.

Jones, J. C., Myerscough, M. R., Graham, S., Oldroyd, B. P. (2004): Honey Bee Nest Thermoregulation: Diversity Promotes Stability. Science, 305(5682) 402–404. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1096340

Matthias, A. B., Holger, S., Robin, F. A. M. (2009): Pupal developmental temperature and behavioral specialization of honeybee workers (Apis mellifera L.). Journal of Comparative Physiology A, 195. 673–679. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-009-0442-7

Medrzycki, P., Sgolastra, F., Bortolotti, L., Bogo, G., Tosi, S. (2009): Influence of brood rearing temperature on honey bee development and susceptibility to poisoning by pesticides. J. Apic. Res., 49(1) 52–59. https://doi.org/10.3896/IBRA.1.49.1.07

Stabentheiner, A., Kovac, H., Brodschneider, R. (2010) Honeybee Colony Thermoregulation – Regulatory Mechanisms and Contribution of Individuals in Dependence on Age, Location and Thermal Stress. PLoS ONE, 5(1) e8967. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0008967

Downloads

Published

2015-12-22

Issue

Vol. 11 No. 2 (2015): AWETH

Section

Cikk szövege

License

Copyright (c) 2015 Szalai Tamás, Loksa Gábor, Pintér Krisztina, Szalai Dániel, Saláta Dénes

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Study on the thermoregulation of the honeybee colony: (A. mellifera) in winter. (2015). Animal Welfare, Ethology and Housing Systems (AWETH), 11(2), 154-159. https://doi.org/10.17205/SZIE.AWETH.2015.2.154