Parasites, pathogens and disease play a huge role in the decline of bees. One example of a parasite which affects forager honeybees is the parasitic mite, Varroa destructor. This ectoparasitic mite was previously only found to affect the Eastern honey bee, Apis cerana, but in the last ~50 years, it has also found a new host, Apis mellifera and become a problem worldwide (Rosenkranz, Aumeier and Ziegelmann, 2010).
Varroa mites reproduce in young honeybee cells, called capped brood cells. They remain in these cells and obtain their nutrition from the hemolymph, therefore leading to a loss of body weight, impairing immunity, and causing the host to become lacking in nutrients (Erban et al., 2015). This mite also has negative effects on the returning …show more content…
It is caused by bacterium Paenibacillus larvae, which forms spores within the affected organism. This disease is a huge problem for both infected larvae and entire colonies but is very difficult to control as very little is known about the mechanisms by which it affects honeybees. It is suggested to be caused by secondary metabolites produced by P. Larvae (Müller et al., 2015). Foulbrood disease is most prevalent amongst young larvae, with one-day-old larvae being most vulnerable. Once spores have been ingested, P.larvae rapidly multiplies in the gut lumen until it reaches the gut epithelium where it infects the hemocoel. By the time the spores reach the hemocoel, the bee has begun to be reduced to a brown glue-like state and subsequently will dry up to become a hard, scale-covered remains (De Smet et …show more content…
CBPV may be transmitted through the feces of infected bees, or through contact/interaction between healthy and infected bees. There are two types of CBPV, which affect infected bees in slightly different ways (Amiri et al., 2014). In Type 1, the affected, sick bees are found clustered outside the hive and have lost the ability to fly, as well as most of the hair from their bodies. In Type 2, affected bees can initially fly but within a few days have lost their ability to fly, and soon after, die. As well as the detrimental loss of worker bees, entire colonies can collapse following the beginning of a CBPV infection. Therefore, this virus has contributed to the decline of bees worldwide (Amiri et al.,
Varroa mites reproduce in young honeybee cells, called capped brood cells. They remain in these cells and obtain their nutrition from the hemolymph, therefore leading to a loss of body weight, impairing immunity, and causing the host to become lacking in nutrients (Erban et al., 2015). This mite also has negative effects on the returning …show more content…
It is caused by bacterium Paenibacillus larvae, which forms spores within the affected organism. This disease is a huge problem for both infected larvae and entire colonies but is very difficult to control as very little is known about the mechanisms by which it affects honeybees. It is suggested to be caused by secondary metabolites produced by P. Larvae (Müller et al., 2015). Foulbrood disease is most prevalent amongst young larvae, with one-day-old larvae being most vulnerable. Once spores have been ingested, P.larvae rapidly multiplies in the gut lumen until it reaches the gut epithelium where it infects the hemocoel. By the time the spores reach the hemocoel, the bee has begun to be reduced to a brown glue-like state and subsequently will dry up to become a hard, scale-covered remains (De Smet et …show more content…
CBPV may be transmitted through the feces of infected bees, or through contact/interaction between healthy and infected bees. There are two types of CBPV, which affect infected bees in slightly different ways (Amiri et al., 2014). In Type 1, the affected, sick bees are found clustered outside the hive and have lost the ability to fly, as well as most of the hair from their bodies. In Type 2, affected bees can initially fly but within a few days have lost their ability to fly, and soon after, die. As well as the detrimental loss of worker bees, entire colonies can collapse following the beginning of a CBPV infection. Therefore, this virus has contributed to the decline of bees worldwide (Amiri et al.,