دراسة سلوك نحل العسل (Apis mellifera jemenitica)‎ في التنظيف لمقاومة حلم الفاروا (Varroa destructor)‎ في وادي دوعن-حضرموت-اليمن

Abstract EN

Varroa destructor mite is one of the most important pests worldwide.

Infestation of these pests results in direct and indirect loss and eventually leads to loss of honeybee colonies if not control.

Varroa destructor alone causes heavy losses that exceed the losses caused by all other bee pests together.

This research aims to study the grooming behavior of Yemeni Honeybee Apis mellifera jemenitica in Doan Valley, to achieve an integrated management of Varroa destructor mite.

The research was carried out in a private apiary in Wadi Dow'an for one year (from December 2018 until November2019).

The laboratorial works were performed at the Honeybee Center in Wadi Dow'an .

The results indicated that the numbers of mites on brood and adult bees in experiment colonies varied from one colony to another and from one month to another.

The study results also showed a difference in the average number of the damaged mites from one month to another during the year.

The highest average for the numbers of the damaged mites was in February (39.6 mites/ colony), whereas the lowest percentage was in October (4 mites/ colony).

The results revealed that the damages were on the legs and the dorsal shield.

The damaged mite is of three types damaged mite in legs, damaged mite in dorsal shield, damaged mite in both legs and dorsal shield.

The maximum percentage of damaged mites was in legs (74.12%), while the percentages of damaged mites in both legs and dorsal shield and in dorsal shield were 16.20% and 9.57 respectively.

It has been found that there is a significant negative correlation (r = 0.937) between the development of the Varroa infestation in honeybee colonies during the year and the percentage of damaged mites.