Evaluation of a Varroa-resistant Apis mellifera selected stock under a commercial beekeeping system in Northern Argentina

The selection and breeding of Apis mellifera colonies with a natural ability to survive Varroa destructor provide a long-term solution for a sustainable apiculture. In Argentina, a selected honey bee stock showing resistance to the mite (named R stock) has been identified and characterized under lab...

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Main Authors: Pietronave, Hernan Pablo, Russo, Romina Maria, Giacobino, Agostina, Palacio, María Alejandra, Liendo, María Clara, Lanzavecchia, Silvia Beatriz, Merke, Julieta, Scannapieco, Alejandra Carla
Format: Artículo
Language:Inglés
Published: Taylor & Francis 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/22937
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00218839.2024.2440199
https://doi.org/10.1080/00218839.2024.2440199
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author Pietronave, Hernan Pablo
Russo, Romina Maria
Giacobino, Agostina
Palacio, María Alejandra
Liendo, María Clara
Lanzavecchia, Silvia Beatriz
Merke, Julieta
Scannapieco, Alejandra Carla
author_browse Giacobino, Agostina
Lanzavecchia, Silvia Beatriz
Liendo, María Clara
Merke, Julieta
Palacio, María Alejandra
Pietronave, Hernan Pablo
Russo, Romina Maria
Scannapieco, Alejandra Carla
author_facet Pietronave, Hernan Pablo
Russo, Romina Maria
Giacobino, Agostina
Palacio, María Alejandra
Liendo, María Clara
Lanzavecchia, Silvia Beatriz
Merke, Julieta
Scannapieco, Alejandra Carla
author_sort Pietronave, Hernan Pablo
collection INTA Digital
description The selection and breeding of Apis mellifera colonies with a natural ability to survive Varroa destructor provide a long-term solution for a sustainable apiculture. In Argentina, a selected honey bee stock showing resistance to the mite (named R stock) has been identified and characterized under laboratory and field conditions. Currently, this selected material is being preserved for further evaluations in a commercial beekeeping system. In this study, we analyzed the population strength, mite levels and honey production of the R stock during two consecutive beekeeping seasons (a total of 16 surveyed apiaries). Results indicated low levels of adult bee mite infestation in R colonies from all apiaries (mean for both seasons: 0.3 ± 0.5% in spring; 1.5 ± 2.0% in summer). The colony strength and food stores of R colonies were similar between apiaries and seasons, and the honey yield per apiary ranged within the average production registered in commercial apiaries of the region. During each following autumn, a subgroup of R colonies was used to compare colony strength, food stores and mite infestation level with non-selected mite-susceptible colonies (named S stock). Overall, R colonies exhibited lower worker brood population, higher honey stores and lower levels of Varroa infestation in autumn compared to S colonies. Our results indicate that R stock displayed a significant potential to maintain the mite resistance phenotype under a commercial beekeeping system, better regulates its overwintering conditions, and exhibits a commercially adequate honey production. Present results provide tools for improving environment-friendly strategies to control varroosis in productive honey bee colonies.
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spelling INTA229372025-07-08T10:16:38Z Evaluation of a Varroa-resistant Apis mellifera selected stock under a commercial beekeeping system in Northern Argentina Pietronave, Hernan Pablo Russo, Romina Maria Giacobino, Agostina Palacio, María Alejandra Liendo, María Clara Lanzavecchia, Silvia Beatriz Merke, Julieta Scannapieco, Alejandra Carla Apis mellifera Programa de Crianza Producción de Miel de Abeja Varroa destructor Resistencia a la Enfermedad Argentina Breeding Programmes Honey Production Disease Resistance The selection and breeding of Apis mellifera colonies with a natural ability to survive Varroa destructor provide a long-term solution for a sustainable apiculture. In Argentina, a selected honey bee stock showing resistance to the mite (named R stock) has been identified and characterized under laboratory and field conditions. Currently, this selected material is being preserved for further evaluations in a commercial beekeeping system. In this study, we analyzed the population strength, mite levels and honey production of the R stock during two consecutive beekeeping seasons (a total of 16 surveyed apiaries). Results indicated low levels of adult bee mite infestation in R colonies from all apiaries (mean for both seasons: 0.3 ± 0.5% in spring; 1.5 ± 2.0% in summer). The colony strength and food stores of R colonies were similar between apiaries and seasons, and the honey yield per apiary ranged within the average production registered in commercial apiaries of the region. During each following autumn, a subgroup of R colonies was used to compare colony strength, food stores and mite infestation level with non-selected mite-susceptible colonies (named S stock). Overall, R colonies exhibited lower worker brood population, higher honey stores and lower levels of Varroa infestation in autumn compared to S colonies. Our results indicate that R stock displayed a significant potential to maintain the mite resistance phenotype under a commercial beekeeping system, better regulates its overwintering conditions, and exhibits a commercially adequate honey production. Present results provide tools for improving environment-friendly strategies to control varroosis in productive honey bee colonies. Instituto de Genética Fil: Pietronave, Hernán Pablo. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Reconquista; Argentina Fil: Russo, Romina Maria. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Genética Ewald A. Favret; Argentina Fil: Russo, Romina Maria. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Agrobiotecnología y Biología Molecular (IABIMO); Argentina Fil: Russo, Romina Maria. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Giacobino, Agostina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Rafaela. Instituto de Investigación de la Cadena Láctea (IDICAL); Argentina Fil: Palacio, María Alejandra. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce. Instituto de Innovación para la Producción Agropecuaria y Desarrollo Sostenible (IPADS); Argentina Fil: Liendo, María Clara. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Genética Ewald A. Favret; Argentina Fil: Liendo, María Clara. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Agrobiotecnología y Biología Molecular(IABIMO); Argentina Fil: Liendo, María Clara. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Lanzavecchia, Silvia Beatriz. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Genética Ewald A. Favret. Laboratorio de Insectos de Importancia Agronómica; Argentina Fil: Lanzavecchia, Silvia Beatriz. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Agrobiotecnología y Biología Molecular (IABIMO); Argentina Fil: Lanzavecchia, Silvia Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Merke, Julieta. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Rafaela. Instituto de Investigación de la Cadena Láctea (IDICAL); Argentina Fil: Scannapieco, Alejandra Carla. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Genética Ewald A. Favret; Argentina Fil: Scannapieco, Alejandra Carla. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Agrobiotecnología y Biología Molecular (IABIMO); Argentina Fil: Scannapieco, Alejandra Carla. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina 2025-07-08T10:08:14Z 2025-07-08T10:08:14Z 2025 info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/22937 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00218839.2024.2440199 0021-8839 https://doi.org/10.1080/00218839.2024.2440199 eng info:eu-repograntAgreement/INTA/2019-PE-E1-I017-001, Desarrollo del sector apícola organizado, sustentable y competitivo info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) application/pdf Taylor & Francis Journal of Apicultural Research : 1-12 (Published online: 09 Jan 2025)
spellingShingle Apis mellifera
Programa de Crianza
Producción de Miel de Abeja
Varroa destructor
Resistencia a la Enfermedad
Argentina
Breeding Programmes
Honey Production
Disease Resistance
Pietronave, Hernan Pablo
Russo, Romina Maria
Giacobino, Agostina
Palacio, María Alejandra
Liendo, María Clara
Lanzavecchia, Silvia Beatriz
Merke, Julieta
Scannapieco, Alejandra Carla
Evaluation of a Varroa-resistant Apis mellifera selected stock under a commercial beekeeping system in Northern Argentina
title Evaluation of a Varroa-resistant Apis mellifera selected stock under a commercial beekeeping system in Northern Argentina
title_full Evaluation of a Varroa-resistant Apis mellifera selected stock under a commercial beekeeping system in Northern Argentina
title_fullStr Evaluation of a Varroa-resistant Apis mellifera selected stock under a commercial beekeeping system in Northern Argentina
title_full_unstemmed Evaluation of a Varroa-resistant Apis mellifera selected stock under a commercial beekeeping system in Northern Argentina
title_short Evaluation of a Varroa-resistant Apis mellifera selected stock under a commercial beekeeping system in Northern Argentina
title_sort evaluation of a varroa resistant apis mellifera selected stock under a commercial beekeeping system in northern argentina
topic Apis mellifera
Programa de Crianza
Producción de Miel de Abeja
Varroa destructor
Resistencia a la Enfermedad
Argentina
Breeding Programmes
Honey Production
Disease Resistance
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/22937
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00218839.2024.2440199
https://doi.org/10.1080/00218839.2024.2440199
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