Honey bee (Apis mellifera) colony health and pathogen composition in migratory beekeeping operations involved in California almond pollination.

ABSTRACT: Honey bees are important pollinators of agricultural crops. Pathogens and other factors have been implicated in high annual losses of honey bee colonies in North America and some European countries. To further investigate the relationship between multiple factors, including pathogen prevalence and abundance and colony health, we monitored commercially managed migratory honey bee colonies involved in California almond pollination in 2014. At each sampling event, honey bee colony health was assessed, using colony population size as a proxy for health, and the prevalence and abundance of seven honey bee pathogens was evaluated using PCR and quantitative PCR, respectively. In this sample cohort, pathogen prevalence and abundance did not correlate with colony health, but did correlate with the

SUBMITTER: Glenny W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5560708 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature