Abstract
The objective of the study was to investigate the impact of the protein content of pollen on the development of the honey bee (Apis mellifera L.). The protein content of the pollen influenced the development of the honey bees, and should be taken into consideration as an essential factor. The pollen collected in different periods of the year has a different protein value. The protein content in the examined samples throughout the three seasons ranged from 13.9% to 27.8%, and the average value was 20.9%. Pollen from plants blooming in spring had higher protein content (21.1–27.8%) than those from summer (13.9–23.5%) and autumn (15.1–25.1%). The great amount of pollen that honey bees collected in spring and its richness in proteins could explain the strong growth of brood and population during this period. The development of bee colonies is higher, when honey bees collect pollen with higher protein content. The higher it is, the higher development is. During the spring the pollen with protein content over 21%, and especially over 27% allows the colonies to maintain a high level of development. When autumn providing pollen with high protein content, the bee colonies grow faster in the early spring of the following year as well. Considering the fact that the new beekeeping season started at the end of August and at the beginning of September of the previous year, the amount of protein in the pollen was of great importance for rearing a large amount of brood in the early spring, when the blooming of a large number of plants had not yet begun and the bees used mainly the pollen supplies from the previous year. When the protein content is going down, the development of the bee colonies is also restricted. There is a relationship between the protein content of pollen and the development of bee colonies. This study shows, that development of the bee colonies is strongly connected by protein content of pollen, and protein content of pollen is characterized by a great dynamics of pollen sources.
Highlights
Pollen provides lipids, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals to the bee colonies and it serves as the honey bees only protein source [1]
The aim of this study is to identify the impact of different protein content of pollen on honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) development
This was due to the large amount of brood reared in March-May (Figure 3) because of the high protein content of the pollen during this period (Table 1) and the autumn in 2013 (Table 2), and it reflected the early rapid and strong development of the bee colonies
Summary
Carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals to the bee colonies and it serves as the honey bees only protein source [1]. The development of the bee colonies has a direct relationship with the contribution and consumption of pollen [2]. The colonies terminate the rearing of brood in the absence of flowering pollen-giving plants in the nature and of protein reserves inside the hive [3]. The shortage of pollen can have significant effects, both on the strength and resilience of the colony and on honey production [4, 5]. Is kept for a long period at 18-26°C, the amount of brood reared in colonies will be reduced [7]. Pollen containing less than 20% crude protein cannot satisfy the colony requirements for its development and optimum honey production [8]
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