Abstract
In this work, we present an electronic gate that aims to extract a deeper representational signal of the color characterization of the main body of an insect, namely: a) we record the backscattered light and not the extinction light as commonly done, b) a color sensor analyses backscattered light to individual RGB channels independently to grasp the melanization, microstructural and color features of the wing and body of the insects passing the gate. We present all the necessary details to reproduce the device and we analyze many insects of interest like the bee Apis mellifera and the wasp Polistes gallicus. The electronic gate is attached to the entrance of the beehive and counts foraging activity. The backscattered light intensity can quantify the size of the incoming insect and discern a drone and a worker bee from a queen bee while the color measurements aim to recognize invasive species so that the gate closes and the beekeepers are alerted.
Highlights
For the past 25 years, European beekeepers have been reporting weakening bee numbers and colony losses and the situation is worsening
Pollinator declines result in loss of pollination services, that have negative ecological and economic impacts significantly affecting the maintenance of wild plant diversity, wider ecosystem stability with potential knock on effects on crop production, food security and human welfare
To help prevent the decline of bee numbers we support the effort of developing IoT sensor applications that can automatically assess the health and threat status of colonies
Summary
For the past 25 years, European beekeepers have been reporting weakening bee numbers and colony losses and the situation is worsening. The direct value of honey produced in the EU is estimated about €140 million [6], while the value of insect pollination for European agriculture has been estimated to be around €20 billion per year, €153 billion worldwide [7].
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