Marina Doris Meixner

• Dr.
• Landesbetrieb Landwirtschaft Hessen

Background: Whole-genome sequencing has become routine for population genetic studies. Sequencing of individuals provides maximal data but is rather expensive and fewer samples can be studied. In contrast, sequencing a pool of samples (pool-seq) can provide sufficient data, while presenting less of an economic challenge. Few studies have compared...

EurBeST — A Pilot Study Testing Varroa-resistant Bees Under Commercial Beekeeping Conditions.

EURBEST KSIĄŻKA METOD OCENY PSZCZELARZE PROWADZĄCY OCENĘ STACJONARNĄ PT Uzunov et., 2021

EURBEST KSIĄŻKA METOD OCENY PSZCZELARZE PROWADZĄCY OCENĘ TERENOWĄ Uzunov et al., 2021

Background With numerous endemic subspecies representing four of its five evolutionary lineages, Europe holds a large fraction of Apis mellifera genetic diversity. This diversity and the natural distribution range have been altered by anthropogenic factors. The conservation of this natural heritage relies on the availability of accurate tools for s...

Sublethal doses of pesticides affect individual honeybees, but colony-level effects are less well understood and it is unclear how the two levels integrate. We studied the effect of the neonicotinoid pesticide clothianidin at field realistic concentrations on small colonies. We found that exposure to clothianidin affected worker jelly production of...

Sublethal doses of pesticides affect individual honeybees, but colony-level effects are less well understood and it is unclear how the two levels integrate. We studied the effect of the neonicotinoid pesticide clothianidin at field realistic concentrations on small colonies. We found that exposure to clothianidin affected worker jelly production of...

Developing resistance to the varroa mite in honey bees is a major goal for apicultural science and practice, the development of selection strategies and the availability of resistant stock. Here we present an extended literature review and survey of resistant populations and selection programs in the EU and elsewhere, including expert interviews. W...

Apis mellifera ruttneri is the endemic honey bee subspecies of the Maltese Islands. This population is endangered by hybridization with other honey bee subspecies that are frequently imported by beekeepers. It deserves conservation because of its unique behavioral traits including adaptation to the local climate. Conservation of honey bee subspecie...

In the fight against the Varroa destructor mite, selective breeding of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) populations that are resistant to the parasitic mite stands as a sustainable solution. Selection initiatives indicate that using the suppressed mite reproduction (SMR) trait as a selection criterion is a suitable tool to breed such resistant bee pop...

Most Varroa induced colony losses occur during the autumn or winter season as a consequence of an elevated Varroa infestation level and an insufficient health status of the adult bees. Even with an initial low Varroa infestation in early spring, critical mite and virus infection levels can be reached before winter if colonies continuously rear broo...

Modern techniques of selective breeding show high potential to improve economically important traits of honey bees. However, breeding may neglect fundamental rules of natural selection. The objective of this study was to analyze the effects of selection and local adaptation on some relevant breeding traits of Apis mellifera carnica. We compared ope...

Solitary bees are frequently exposed to pesticides, which are considered as one of the main stress factors that may lead to population declines. A strong immune defence is vital for the fitness of bees. However, the immune system can be weakened by environmental factors that may render bees more vulnerable to parasites and pathogens. Here we demons...

On the graph on the left 3000+ honey bees collected across Europe are differentiated into subspecies and local ecotypes using the 4000+ SNPs developed in SmartBees. In the top a cluster of samples consisting of O-lineage bees, to the right M-lineage bees, to the left C-lineage bees and central the A-lineage bees. Subspecies that appear in close pro...

Varroa destructor is probably the most serious cause of European honey bee ( Apis mellifera ) losses on a global level. However, the presence of untreated survivor populations in many different regions support the idea of selecting resistant stock. Recently, the European Commission requested a study on the present status of breeding activities rega...

To explore genotype-environment-interactions in honey bees, the survival and performance of 597 colonies, representing five subspecies and 16 different genotypes, were comparatively studied in the framework of the COLOSS project. The study was carried out from 2009 to 2012 in 21 apiaries across Europe. The colonies were continuously assessed for tr...

Clothianidin is a commonly used systemic insecticide in seed treatments. Residues of clothianidin can occur in nectar and pollen as a result of within-plant-translocation. Foraging bees can collect contaminated nectar or pollen. Concerns have been brought forward that exposure to pesticide residues might affect colonies especially if they are weake...

Apis mellifera ruttneri, the honey bee subspecies endemic to Malta, must be regarded as seriously endangered. However, there is a critical need for scientific data to support and guide conservation measures, since only two scientific papers concerning this subspecies were published since its original description in 1997. To this end in June 2017, a...

Apis mellifera ruttneri is the endemic honey bee of Malta where more than 4000 colonies are managed on the main islands of Malta, Gozo and Comino. It is believed that beekeeping has been practiced in Malta since the Punic times. Ancient Roman apiaries dating over 2000 years are a living evidence of such practices which are well preserved to this da...

Deformed wing virus (DWV) is an important pathogen in a broad range of insects, including honey bees. Concordant with the spread of Varroa, DWV is present in the majority of honey bee colonies and can result in either low-level infections with asymptomatic bees that nonetheless exhibit increased colony loss under stress, or high-level infections wi...

DWV and SBV titers in different experiment. The virus titer for the three experiments are deposited in the supplementary file. (XLSX)

Apis mellifera ruttneri, the honey bee subspecies endemic to Malta, must be regarded as critically endangered. First, the arrival of the Varroa mite in the 1990's had devastating effects on the number of colonies, and nowadays increasing pressure from importations of selected commercial stock (A. m. ligustica, A. m. carnica, Buckfast) is leading to...

Apis mellifera ruttneri is an endemic honeybee confined to the Maltese Islands and is one of just ten honey bee sub-species described in Europe. It is an important receptacle of environmental adaptations and if it is to thrive, it is essential that suitable habitats that can provide adequate foraging, with minimal exposure to competitors and pathog...

The status of Apis mellifera ruttneri, an endemic honey bee of the Maltese islands, was uncertain after a series of devastating Varroa mite infestations followed by ill-conceived replacement programs. Morphometric analysis, which was the method originally used to identify this honey bee subspecies, was carried out using 33 different parameters. Thi...

In cases of acute intoxication, honeybees often lay in front of their hives for several days, exposed to sunlight and weather, before a beekeeper can take a sample. Beekeepers send samples to analytical laboratories, but sometimes no residues can be detected. Temperature and sun light could influence the decrease of pesticides in bee samples and th...

Queen health is crucial to colony survival of honeybees, since reproduction and colony growth rely solely on the queen. Queen failure is considered a relevant cause of colony losses, yet few data exist concerning effects of environmental stressors on queens. Here we demonstrate for the first time that exposure to field-realistic concentrations of n...

The cover image, by Reinhold Siede et al., is based on the Research Article Performance of honey bee colonies under a long‐lasting dietary exposure to sublethal concentrations of the neonicotinoid insecticide thiacloprid†, DOI: 10.1002/ps.4547.

Wolbachia are widely distributed bacterial endosymbionts of arthropods and filarial nematodes. These bacteria can affect host fitness in a variety of ways, such as protecting hosts against viruses and other pathogens. Here we investigate the possible role of Wolbachia in the prevalence of the deformed wing virus (DWV), a highly virulent pathogen of...

Background: Substantial honey bee colony losses have occurred periodically in the last decades. The drivers for these losses are not fully understood. The influence of pests and pathogens are beyond dispute, but in addition, chronic exposure to sub-lethal concentrations of pesticides has been suggested to affect the performance of honey bee coloni...

Deformed wing virus is an important contributor to honey bee colony losses. Frequently queen failure is reported as a cause for colony loss. Here we examine whether sexual transmission during multiple matings of queens is a possible way of virus infection in queens. In an environment with high prevalence of deformed wing virus, queens (n = 30) were...

A strong immune defense is vital for honey bee health and colony survival. This defense can be weakened by environmental factors that may render honey bees more vulnerable to parasites and pathogens. Honey bees are frequently exposed to neonicotinoid pesticides, which are being discussed as one of the stress factors that may lead to colony failure....

In honey bees, multiple mating of queens with often more than 20 drones, known as polyandry, is extreme. At the colony level, polyandry can provide fitness gains through better division of labor and disease resistance. For the honey bee queen polyandry may pose a risk, for instance through sexually transmitted diseases. Deformed wing virus (DWV) is...

Honey bee virus prevalence data are an essential prerequisite for managing epidemic events in a population. A survey study was carried out for seven viruses in colonies representing a healthy Danish honey bee population. In addition, colonies from apiaries with high level Varroa infestation or high level of winter mortality were also surveyed. Resu...

The honey bee Apis mellifera, of which there are currently 28 identified subspecies and numerous ecotypes, have been evolving and adapting to a wide range of environments for hundreds of thousands of years within their native range of Europe, Africa and Asia. Honey bees have been widely dispersed over the past several hundred years and are now also...

Honey bee surveillance systems are increasingly used to characterize honey bee health and disease burdens of bees in different regions and/or over time. In addition to quantifying disease prevalence, surveillance systems can identify risk factors associated with colony morbidity and mortality. Surveillance systems are often observational, and prove...

Honey bee colony losses have risen seriously in the past decade, especially in the USA. In Europe, average loss rates appear less dramatic and high losses occur less frequently; still, high losses may happen on a regional scale. Scientists and beekeepers are struggling to find answers to this problem. Queen loss and infertility is frequently consid...

cecilia.costa@entecra.it The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of genotype-environment interactions on the survival, performance and disease susceptibility of honey bee colonies headed by queens originating from several areas in Europe. We included 16 different genotypes from different backgrounds (some from breeding programs with s...

We used radio-frequency identification (RFID) to record the duration and frequency of nuptial flights of honey bee queens (Apis mellifera carnica) at two mainland mating apiaries. We investigated the effect of a number of factors on flight duration and frequency: mating apiary, number of drone colonies, queen’s age and temperature. We found signifi...

The genetic variability of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) from south eastern Europe was investigated using microsatellite analyses of 107 samples from Albania, the Republic of Macedonia, Greece and Bulgaria together with 42 reference samples (Apis mellifera carnica) from Slovenia. Genetic structure and spatial analyses of the microsatellite data sh...

The COLOSS GEI (Genotype-Environment Interactions) Experiment was setup to further our understanding of recent honey bee colony losses. The main objective of the GEI experiment was to understand the effects of environmental factors on the vitality of European honey bee genotypes. This paper aims to describe the genetic background and population all...

The survival and performance of 597 honey bee colonies, representing five subspecies and 16 different genotypes, were comparatively studied in 20 apiaries across Europe. Started in October 2009, 15.7% of the colonies survived without any therapeutic treatment against diseases until spring 2012. The survival duration was strongly affected by environ...

An international collaborative experiment was run from 2009 to 2012 (Costa et al., 2012) with the aim of understanding genotype-environment effects on survival and health status of honey bee colonies headed by queens of different European origins that were tested in various locations under differing environmental conditions. No chemical treatment a...

Adaptation of honey bees to their environment is expressed by the annual development pattern of the colony, the balance with food sources and the host -parasite balance, all of which interact among each other with changes in the environment. In the present study, we analyse the development patterns over a period of two years in colonies belonging t...

Honey bee colonies exhibit a wide range of variation in their behaviour, depending on their genetic origin and environmental factors. The COLOSS Genotype-Environment Interactions Experiment gave us the opportunity to investigate the phenotypic expression of the swarming, defensive and hygienic behaviour of 16 genotypes from five different honey bee...

Although knowledge about honey bee geographic and genetic diversity has increased tremendously in recent decades, the adaptation of honey bees to their local environment has not been well studied. The current demand for high economic performance of bee colonies with desirable behavioural characteristics contributes to changing the natural diversity...

Diseases are known to be one of the major contributors to colony losses. Within a Europe-wide experiment on genotype - environment interactions, an initial 621 colonies were set up and maintained from 2009 to 2012. The colonies were monitored to investigate the occurrence and levels of key pathogens. These included the mite Varroa destructor (mites...

Chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV) is known as a disease of worker honey bees. To investigate pathogenesis of the CBPV on the queen, the sole reproductive individual in a colony, we conducted experiments regarding the susceptibility of queens to CBPV. Results from susceptibility experiment showed a similar disease progress in the queens compared to...

The natural diversity of honey bees in Europe is eroding fast. A multitude of reasons lead to a loss of both genetic diversity and specific adaptations to local conditions. To preserve locally adapted bees through breeding efforts and to maintain regional strains in conservation areas, these valuable populations need to be identified. In this paper...

Honey bee colony losses of the last decade have been alarming. Besides the most critical factors, such as parasites and pathogens, losses have been claimed to be linked to immunodeficiency. For the evaluation of this suggestion powerful immunological tests are required. The aim of this study was to obtain further data to characterize common markers...

An international experiment to estimate the importance of genotype-environment interactions on vitality and performance of honey bees and on colony losses was run between July 2009 and March 2012. Altogether 621 bee colonies, involving 16 different genetic origins of European honey bees, were tested in 21 locations spread in 11 countries. The genet...

Inland mating stations play an important role for bee breeding in Germany although it is generally assumed that they are not as reliable as islands mating yards. Former experiments have shown that the reliability of inland mating stations can be considerably improved by increasing the number of drone colonies. But although drone aggregation areas i...

Honey bees endemic to the volcanic dome system of Ethiopia are described as a new subspecies, Apis mellifera simensis, on the basis of morphometrical analyses. Principal component and discriminant analyses show that the Ethiopian bees are clearly distinct and statistically separable from honey bees belonging to neighboring subspecies in eastern Afr...

Although it is generally assumed that inland mating stations are not as reliable as islands mating yards, many commercial and hobby beekeepers use them instead of islands for practical reasons. We examined to which extent the genetic influence of foreign drones at lowland mating yards can be reduced by increasing the number of drone colonies. There...

Pre-selected honeybee colonies from private beekeepers participating in a breeding project were overwintered without treatment against varroosis in different apiaries in Germany. Colony development, infestation levels with Varroa destructor, viral infections and nosema infestations were observed during fall 2009 and correlated with colony survival...

The Western honey bee, Apis mellifera, is the most important animal pollinator in agriculture worldwide providing more than 90% of the commercial pollination services. Due to the development in agriculture the demands for honey bee pollination are steadily increasing stressing the pollination capacity of the global managed honey bee population. Hen...

Beekeepers in Europe, North America and other parts of the world have repeatedly been afflicted by elevated and sometimes unexplained colony losses. Multiple factors have been considered in connection with increased winter losses. In addition to national programmes investigating possible causes for increased honey bee mortality, scientists collabor...

Honey bees are a highly valued resource around the world. They are prized for their honey and wax production and depended upon for pollination of many important crops. While globally honey bee populations have been increasing, the rate of increase is not keeping pace with demand. Further, honey bee populations have not been increasing in all parts...

Genetic diversity levels within and between the two commercial breeding areas in the United States were analyzed using the DraI restriction fragment length polymorphism of the COI-COII mitochondrial region and 10 polymorphic microsatellite loci. The western commercial breeding population (WCBP) and the southeastern commercial breeding population (S...

We analyzed mitochondrial DNA variation in honey bee colonies in Jordan using DraI restriction profiles of the COI-COII intergenic region. Seven different haplotypes were observed, three of which belonged to the C mitochondrial lineage. Samples displaying haplotypes of the C lineage were concentrated in the north of the country where frequent impor...

The variability of Apis mellifera mellifera in Eastern Europe was investigated with a morphometric analysis of 136 samples from Poland, Belarus and the Ukraine. Samples from the northern part of this area were unambiguously classified as A. m. mellifera, but the proportion of uncertain allocations increased towards the south, where some samples wer...

Geographic distribution of the eastern honeybee, Apis cerana (Hymenoptera: Apidae), across ecological zones in China: morphological and molecular analyses Abstract The biogeography and intraspecific variability of the eastern cavity-nesting honeybee, Apis cerana, are not very well known. We studied the variability of this spe-cies in China using mo...

Geographic distribution of the eastern honeybee, Apis cerana (Hymenoptera: Apidae), across ecological zones in China: morphological and molecular analyses Abstract The biogeography and intraspecific variability of the eastern cavity-nesting honeybee, Apis cerana, are not very well known. We studied the variability of this spe-cies in China using mo...

The variability of the honey bees of northern Cyprus was investigated using morphometric, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and microsatellite analyses. Morphometric analysis resulted in a clear classification of the Cyprus bees as Apis mellifera cypria, but showed the influence of imported A. m. anatoliaca in some areas. In eastern Cyprus, several samples...

Restriction fragment length polymorphism of whole mitochondrial DNA or PCR amplified mtDNA regions are known to be useful in discriminating among honey bee lineages and also some individual subspecies. In this study, PCR-amplified fragments of cytochrome oxidase I (CO-I) and cytochrome B (Cyt B) of honey bees sampled from different countries (Cypru...

One day old honeybee workers (Apis mellifera) were observed in small experimental groups (10 workers per group). These groups were either composed of offspring workers of singly inseminated queens (super-sister groups) or multiply inseminated queens (mixed groups). The groups thus consisted of either super-sisters or a mix of super- and halfsisters...

Microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variability data were used to study infestations of the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann) in Florida in 1997 and 1998. A total of 132 flies collected in monitoring traps or as larvae removed from fruit were examined at three polymorphic mtDNA restriction sites and two microsatellite...

Endemic honey bees of the Tien Shan Mountains in Central Asia are described as a new subspecies, Apis mellifera pomonella, on the basis of morphometric analyses. Principal component and discriminant analysis of the morphological characters measured clearly place these bees into the oriental evolutionary branch of honey bees, but also show that they...

Microsatellite and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variability data were used to study outbreaks of Mediterranean fruit fly in California in the years 1992-94 and 1997-99. A total of 359 flies caught in monitoring traps during these years were examined at three polymorphic mtDNA restriction sites and two microsatellite loci. Composite genotypes obtained...