Evaluation of low-cost, easy-to-prepare protein diets using beer yeast, sugar cane yeast and texturized soy protein for Africanized Apis mellifera in apiaries in Santa Catarina, Brazil

Mara Rúbia Romeu Pinto Müller,Marcelo Maraschin,Aline Nunes,Fábio Pereira Leivas Leite,Denise Nunes Araújo

doi:10.33448/rsd-v11i3.26836

Abstract

The aim of the study was to evaluate different diets for Apis mellifera in three regions of Santa Catarina, Brazil. The bees received the diets weekly, for 60 days. The treatments used and the corresponding crude protein contents were: D1 – sugar syrup; D2 – commercial feed (24.4%); D3 – sugarcane yeast + commercial sugar (17.0%); D4 – beer yeast + commercial sugar (14.9%); D5 – sugarcane yeast + textured soy protein + commercial sugar (20.9%). The parameters evaluated were: measurement of the breeding areas (drone, open, closed and total), measurement of the food deposit areas (honey and pollen) and percentage of infestation by Varroa destructor. At the end of study, a physical-chemical analysis of the honey was carried out. Significant differences were observed when comparing protein rations with the negative control group in the variables of areas of open brood, total brood (Sierra region) and infestation by Varroa destructor (Santa Catarina western and Sierra region). No changes were detected in the honeys in relation to the current regulations, demonstrating that the supply of the diets, under the conditions of the study, is safe for maintaining the standards of identity and quality of the final product.

Highlights

IntroductionBeekeeping has different forms and schemes in different parts of the world, varying their patterns over the centuries, mainly with the colonization of new regions, being modified every decade as a result of new agricultural methods, affecting the bee flora
When evaluating the breeding areas, 60 days after the hives were uniform and the feeding started, a significant difference was observed in the open brooding area and in the total brooding area, between the protein diets and the negative control diet (D1), in the apiary of São Joaquim
Under the conditions in which the experiment was carried out, the protein diets evaluated can be considered efficient for the artificial feeding of Apis mellifera bees

Summary

Introduction

Beekeeping has different forms and schemes in different parts of the world, varying their patterns over the centuries, mainly with the colonization of new regions, being modified every decade as a result of new agricultural methods, affecting the bee flora. The scarcity of floral resources at certain times can result in a nutritional deficiency of swarms. This factor considerably affects food reserves, causes a decrease in the number of offspring, an increase in cannibalism within the hives and impairs the nutrition status of subsequent generations of workers (Brodschneider, & Crailsheim, 2010; Araújo et al, 2013). Considering the lack of natural food, the supplementary diet can supply the bee’s needs, in order to keep the swarms in the apiaries. In these cases, artificial feeding can be decisive in its maintenance (Lima, Silva, Soares, & Evangelista-Rodrigues, 2015; Lima et al, 2017)

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