Foraging Activity Of Bees Research Articles

Warmer autumns and winters could reduce honey bee overwintering survival with potential risks for pollination services

Honey bees and other pollinators are critical for food production and nutritional security but face multiple survival challenges. The effect of climate change on honey bee colony losses is only recently being explored. While correlations between higher winter temperatures and greater colony losses have been noted, the impacts of warmer autumn and winter temperatures on colony population dynamics and age structure as an underlying cause of reduced colony survival have not been examined. Focusing on the Pacific Northwest US, our objectives were to (a) quantify the effect of warmer autumns and winters on honey bee foraging activity, the age structure of the overwintering cluster, and spring colony losses, and (b) evaluate indoor cold storage as a management strategy to mitigate the negative impacts of climate change. We perform simulations using the VARROAPOP population dynamics model driven by future climate projections to address these objectives. Results indicate that expanding geographic areas will have warmer autumns and winters extending honey bee flight times. Our simulations support the hypothesis that late-season flight alters the overwintering colony age structure, skews the population towards older bees, and leads to greater risks of colony failure in the spring. Management intervention by moving colonies to cold storage facilities for overwintering has the potential to reduce honey bee colony losses. However, critical gaps remain in how to optimize winter management strategies to improve the survival of overwintering colonies in different locations and conditions. It is imperative that we bridge the gaps to sustain honey bees and the beekeeping industry and ensure food and nutritional security.

Effects of lithium on locomotor activity and circadian rhythm of honey bees

Lithium has been considered a potential acaricidal agent against the honey bee (Apis mellifera) parasite Varroa. It is known that lithium suppresses elevated activity and regulates circadian rhythms and light response when administered to humans as a primary therapeutic chemical for bipolar disorder and to other bipolar syndrome model organisms, given the crucial role of timing in the bee's foraging activity and the alternating sunlight vs dark colony environment bees are exposed, we explored the influence of lithium on locomotor activity (LMA) and circadian rhythm of honey bees. We conducted acute and chronic lithium administration experiments, altering light conditions and lithium doses to assess LMA and circadian rhythm changes. We fed bees one time 10 μl sucrose solution with 0, 50, 150, and 450 mM LiCl in the acute application experiment and 0, 1, 5, and 10 mmol/kg LiCl ad libitum in bee candy in the chronic application experiment. Both acute and chronic lithium treatments significantly decreased the induced LMA under constant light. Chronic lithium treatment disrupted circadian rhythmicity in constant darkness. The circadian period was lengthened by lithium treatment under constant light. We discuss the results in the context of Varroa control and lithium's effect on bipolar disorder.

Foraging activity and role of stingless bee Tetragonula iridipennis Smith (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in bitter gourd

In the bitter gourd cropping system, honey bees were the primary pollinators. In the Coimbatore district, a field study was conducted to record the foraging activity and pollination efficiency of the stingless bee Tetragonula iridipennis in bitter gourd. Bee foraging activity was recorded separately in male and female flowers, with the number of foragers/flower/min recorded. Fruit set and yield were assessed under three different conditions: pollinator exclusion, bee pollination, and open pollination. Abundance of Pollinators and foraging rate of stingless bees observed on male flower 1.71 bees/ flower/ minute and flower handling time in seconds was (37.86 sec) was higher than female flowers 1.22 bees / flower/ minute and (25.73 sec) respectively. The peak foraging activity of stingless bees was observed between 08:00-10:00 hours with 3.30 bees/ 5 mins. The pollination efficiency index of stingless bees in bitter gourd flowers was 41600. The foraging activity of bees at the hive entrance was at its peak at 08:00 to 10:00 hours. T. Iridipennis colony growth parameters show increased honey sealed area 1464.5 g and brood development. The experiment results show that yield was higher in the managed bee-pollinated condition in terms of number of fruits/plant was (18.2 fruits) and fruit yield per hectare (44.08 t/ha) than in the open pollinated condition (16.5 fruits) and (38.30 t/ha), and with pollinators excluded, no fruit set was recorded.

Local influence of floral resource attributes on urban bumble bee foraging activity

IntroductionUrbanization diminishes the extent of uncompacted, exposed soil and the coverage of wild plant species, yet still supports diverse pollinator communities when their habitat is maintained within the built environment. Floral abundance and richness are known to influence bee foraging behavior, and these factors vary across the landscape, especially across heterogeneous urban extents. This study assesses how floral resources are distributed across the city of Madison, WI and how these factors influence the distribution of foraging bumble bees.MethodsWe conducted a systematic walking transect survey of bumble bees across Madison, WI. The resulting point location data associated with more than 5,000 non-lethally surveyed bumble bees were analyzed with regard to floral resource explanatory variables as well as underlying land use zoning on more than 700 transects. We used Moran's I correlograms to investigate spatial autocorrelation in floral resource variables and bumble bee counts, then we fitted a generalized linear model predicting transect bee counts based on floral cover, density, species richness and wild plant species richness on the distribution of foraging bees. We employed a geographically-weighted regression model to explore non-stationarity in the effects of floral resource explanatory variables across the study extent.ResultsWe found significant positive influence of flower cover, species richness, and weakly significant positive influence of wildflower species richness on foraging bee counts within the model as well as a significant positive influence of the land use zoning categorical variable. The effects of floral resource predictors on foraging bumble bees varies based on landscape context across the city.DiscussionThe results of this study show that landscapes with high cover as well as floral diversity maximize bumble bee foraging, and the positive effect of wildflower species richness stands out where floral cover and overall richness are also present. Given that urban landscapes are not homogeneous and that floral resources are not consistently distributed across the cityscape, valuable pollinator habitat should be protected, and supplemented where gaps persist.

Sublethal behavioral impacts of resource limitation and insecticide exposure reinforce negative fitness outcomes for a solitary bee

Contemporary landscapes present numerous challenges for bees and other beneficial insects that play critical functional roles in natural ecosystems and agriculture. Pesticides and the loss of food resources from flowering plants are two stressors known to act together to impair bee fitness. The impact of these stressors on key behaviors like foraging and nesting can limit pollination services and population persistence, making it critical to understand these sublethal effects. We investigated the effects of insecticide exposure and floral resource limitation on the foraging and nesting behavior of the solitary blue orchard bee, Osmia lignaria. Bees in field cages foraged on wildflowers at high or low densities, some treated with the common insecticide, imidacloprid, in a fully crossed design. Both stressors influenced behavior, but they had differential impacts. Bees with limited food resources made fewer, but longer foraging trips and misidentified their nests more often. Insecticide exposure reduced bee foraging activity. Additionally, insecticides interacted with bee age to influence antagonistic behavior among neighboring females, such that insecticide-exposed bees were less antagonistic with age. Our findings point towards mechanisms underlying effects on populations and ecosystem function and reinforce the importance of studying multiple drivers to understand the consequences of anthropogenic change.

Prediction of the remaining time of the foraging activity of honey bees using spatio-temporal correction and periodic model re-fitting

The problem of bee poisoning causes significant losses to the beekeeping sector every year. One cause of bee poisoning is spraying before the end of the foraging activity of bees. Information about the estimated end of this foraging activity can significantly help a farmer plan his spraying. The aim of our research was to develop a method based on machine learning models to predict the remaining time of the foraging activity, taking into account bee activity, weather conditions, and the amount of time to sunset. Data were collected using an IoT system from 3 hives in the 2021 and 2022 beekeeping seasons. The proposed method addresses the challenge of the changing nature of data during the beekeeping season by using periodic model re-fitting with automatically generated semi-true target values. The veracity of semi-true target values was also improved by a spatio-temporal correction mechanism based on the position and orientation of the bees, which made it possible to distinguish foraging from other patterns of bee behavior (dead bees, hive ventilation by bees). The results of the RMSE prediction error of 23.1 min (season 2021) and 26.5 min (season 2022) prove the high potential of the proposed method to predict the remaining time of the foraging activity of bees, as well the lack of need for expert annotation of data during the season. The used approach, based on density occurrence maps in spatio-temporal correction, can also be used in the future to detect and study bee behavior patterns.

Seed-coating of rapeseed (Brassica napus) with the neonicotinoid clothianidin affects behaviour of red mason bees (Osmia bicornis) and pollination of strawberry flowers (Fragaria × ananassa).

Neonicotinoid insecticides applied to flowering crops can have negative impacts on bees, with implications for crop pollination. To assess if exposure to the neonicotinoid clothianidin via a treated crop (rapeseed) affected bee behaviour, pollination performance (to strawberry), and bee reproduction, we provided each of 12 outdoor cages with rapeseed (autumn-sown plants complemented with a few spring-sown plants to extend the flowering period) grown from either clothianidin-treated or untreated (control) seeds, together with strawberry plants and a small population of red mason bees (Osmia bicornis). We expected clothianidin to reduce bee foraging activity, resulting in impaired strawberry pollination and bee reproduction. During the early stage of the experiment, we observed no difference between treatments in the length of entire foraging trips, or the combined number of rapeseed and strawberry flowers that the bees visited during these trips. During the later stage of the experiment, we instead determined the time a female took to visit 10 rapeseed flowers, as a proxy for foraging performance. We found that they were 10% slower in clothianidin cages. Strawberries weighed less in clothianidin cages, suggesting reduced pollination performance, but we were unable to relate this to reduced foraging activity, because the strawberry flowers received equally many visits in the two treatments. Clothianidin-exposed females sealed their nests less often, but offspring number, sex ratio and weight were similar between treatments. Observed effects on bee behaviour appeared by the end of the experiment, possibly because of accumulated effects of exposure, reduced bee longevity, or higher sensitivity of the protocols we used during the later phase of the experiment. Although the lack of a mechanistic explanation calls for interpreting the results with cautiousness, the lower strawberry weight in clothianidin cages highlights the importance of understanding complex effects of plant protection products, which could have wider consequences than those on directly exposed organisms.

FORAGING PATTERN OF APIS CERANA INDICA FAB DURING DIFFERENT SEASONS IN COASTAL BELT OF CUDDALORE, TAMILNADU, INDIA

Foraging bees collect pollen and nectar from various floral resources to fulfil their nutritional requirements. Forging activity of bees change for every one hour, based on floral sources available, their colony requirement and weather parameters. In a calendar year, maximum number of bees i.e., 36.38 to 41.57, forage from February to May due to the presence of better floral sources, and minimum during November and December (20.33 and 25.05) because of heavy rainfall and scarcity of floral sources in coastal belt of Chidambaram, Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu. This paper deals with the foraging activity of bees during different months in a year and possible reasons for such changes in foraging which might be helpful for the coastal beekeepers to know about the honey flow and dearth periods and plan their activities either for sustaining or shifting colonies without losing for a successful apiculture. 

The 1-D bin packing problem optimisation using bees algorithm

The bin packing problem is a classic combinatorial optimisation problem that is widely used in various applications such as assembly line balancing, scheduling, and time-tabling. Metaheuristic algorithms can provide solutions to these problems faster than exact methods. Bees Algorithm, a metaheuristic algorithm inspired by the foraging activity of bees, is known for its performance in solving optimisation problems. To our best knowledge, this is the first use of the Bees Algorithm to solve a bin packing problem. In this paper, we use the basic Bees Algorithm to demonstrate near-optimal solutions and measure the accuracy of solutions to the one-dimensional bin packing problem. The algorithm procedure and parameter settings are set following the previous research. Benchmark datasets are used in the experiment, and accuracy is measured. The results indicate that the basic Bees Algorithm for bin packing problems and previous research on travelling salesman problems produce similar accuracy results.

The conflict between avian predators and domestic honey bees: a case study of European bee-eater (Merops apiaster L.) preying on the honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) in Cyprus

Bee-eaters are protected birds due to their contribution to the ecosystem, but at the same time, they inflict damages on bees which cause conflicts with beekeepers. This research aimed to study the impact of bee-eaters on the foraging activity of the honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) and the effectiveness of the applied control measures, proposing a solution for the coexistence of birds and bees. We discouraged bee-eaters by using different methods and testing their efficacy. The presence of bee-eaters around the apiary caused the reduction of honey bee foraging activity along with effects on brood rearing and temperature regulation of the hive. The so-far proposed measures to prevent bee-eaters' attacks in the apiaries were tested and found to have limited effect. Considering the role of honey bees in pollination and bee-eaters in the insect-bird food chains, we propose a harmonious coexistence of bees and birds. This strategy has been adopted by the beekeepers of Cyprus, who were committed to pursuing methods of limited protection of bees from the predatory birds, ensuring the survival of both components.

Automated Video Monitoring of Unmarked and Marked Honey Bees at the Hive Entrance

We present a novel system for the automatic video monitoring of honey bee foraging activity at the hive entrance. This monitoring system is built upon convolutional neural networks that perform multiple animal pose estimation without the need for marking. This precise detection of honey bee body parts is a key element of the system to provide detection of entrance and exit events at the entrance of the hive including accurate pollen detection. A detailed evaluation of the quality of the detection and a study of the effect of the parameters are presented. The complete system also integrates identification of barcode marked bees, which enables the monitoring at both aggregate and individual levels. The results obtained on multiple days of video recordings show the applicability of the approach for large-scale deployment. This is an important step forward for the understanding of complex behaviors exhibited by honey bees and the automatic assessment of colony health.

Impact of Neonicotinoid Insecticides on the Foraging Activity of Indian Honey Bee, Apiscerana indica (Fab.) in the Cotton Ecosystem

Indian honey bees are the important managed pollinators of several agricultural and horticultural crops in India. At present, bee colony decline is the biggest crisis amongbeekeepers. The use of neonicotinoid insecticides is considered the prime factor, and they were found to cause a direct impact on bees by mortality and indirectly impair the foraging behavior of bees. Hence, the study aimed to assess the impact of neonicotinoids on the foraging activity of Indian honey bees. The neonicotinoids viz., imidacloprid 17.8 SL, clothianidin 50 WDG, thiamethoxam 25 WG, and thiacloprid 21.7 SC, along with organophosphate dimethoate 30 EC (chemical check) and control (no spray) were sprayed at field recommended doses on cotton crop. Foraging activity of the bees,viz.,incoming foragers with nectar and pollen load and outgoing foragers were counted at the hive entrance during the morning (09.00-11.00), afternoon (13.00-15.00), and evening (16.00-18.00) hours of the day. The data were recorded at pre-treatment count and posttreatment count on different day intervals viz., 1DAS, 3DAS, 7DAS, and 15DAS. The mean number of incoming nectar, pollen foragers, and outgoing foragers were recorded to be maximum in control than neonicotinoid-treated plots. Hence, the reduction in foraging activity may lead to areduction in the food storage area and brood area ultimately lesseningthe overall colony growth. It’s always better to avoid spraying cotton crop during the flowering period using neonicotinoids to dodge the residues even though cotton is not a food crop; meanwhile, it will safeguard the pollinators.

Pollinators and plant nurseries: how irrigation and pesticide treatment of native ornamental plants impact solitary bees.

A key conservation goal in agroecosystems is to understand how management practices may affect beneficial species, such as pollinators. Currently, broad gaps exist in our knowledge as to how horticultural management practices, such as irrigation level, might influence bee reproduction, particularly for solitary bees. Despite the extensive use of ornamental plants by bees, especially little is known about how irrigation level may interact with insecticides, like water-soluble neonicotinoids, to influence floral rewards and bee reproduction. We designed a two-factor field cage experiment in which we reared Megachile rotundata (Fabricius) (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae) on containerized ornamental plants grown under two different irrigation levels and imidacloprid treatments (30% label rate dosage of a nursery formulation or an untreated control). Lower irrigation was associated with modest decreases in nectar volume and floral abundance in untreated plants, whereas irrigation did not affect plants treated with imidacloprid. Furthermore, higher irrigation decreased the amount of imidacloprid entering nectar. Imidacloprid application strongly reduced bee foraging activity and reproduction, and higher irrigation did not offset any negative effects on bees. Our study emphasizes the impact of a nursery neonicotinoid formulation on solitary bee foraging and reproduction, while highlighting interactions between irrigation level and neonicotinoid application in containerized plants themselves.

Pollen source preferences and pollination efficacy of honey bee, Apis mellifera (Apidae: Hymenoptera) on Brassica napus crop

Brassica napus is an insect-pollinated crop species and offers itself as the main nutrient source to many insects that consume floral nectar. This study was carried out to ascertain the pollen preferences of Apis mellifera among the available floral resources. We wanted to identify and quantify all types of pollen collected by honeybee during the flowering period. Moreover, the foraging rate and pollination efficacy of managed honey bee colonies (placed at 250 and 500 m distance away) on B. napus crop were determined. The results revealed that A. mellifera foraged efficiently on 18 plants species belonging to 11 families during the flowering period of the Brassica crop. The Asteraceae family was represented by six plants species as pollen sources followed by Solanaceae, Malvaceae, Fabaceae, and Rosaceae represented by two plant species from each family. One floral source included Brassicaceae, Convolvulaceae, and Poaceae families. Among 18 identified plant species, 6 were weeds, 4 herbs, 4 shrubs, and 2 species each were from crops and ornamental plants. In this study, weeds were reported as the major bee supporting bee flora followed by shrub and crops. The identified pollen grains had different morphology such as sub-spheroid, prolate shape, spheroid, ovate, glandular, triangular, round, and oval shape. The maximum foraging activities of bees on B. napus took place during day hours particularly at 12:00 PM followed by 14:00 PM, and then at 10:00 AM weekly. The study revealed that the total number of pods per plant, total number of seeds per 100 pods, and weight of seeds per 10 plants were significantly higher in bee-pollinated flowering plants compared to flowering plants with no bee-pollination.

Assessment of pollen and honey diet of Tetragonisca angustula fiebrigi Schwarz in the Chaco dry forest by using pollen analysis

Pollen and honey resources composing the diet of Tetragonisca angustula fiebrigi Schwarz were assessed using pollen analysis of wild colonies sampled in two kinds of native dry forests of the Chaco region. Different measurements: direct pollen count, relative volume, diversity and evenness indices, value of importance of species (SI), and index of relative importance (IRI) were compared. The IRI identified the most important pollen resources as Prosopis (IRI = 1619), Schinopsis type (IRI = 1578), Trithrinax schizophylla (IRI = 972) and Capparicordis/Sarcotoxicum (IRI = 587), and according to SI the honey resources were Schinopsis type (SI = 117.41), Maytenus type (SI = 101.89), Prosopis (SI = 86.47) and Ziziphus mistol (SI = 50.93). The absolute pollen analysis of honey revealed that all samples were rich in pollen grains. Floral resources were most homogeneously foraged during spring and summer when a high number of flowerings were available and the highest temperatures were recorded. These optimal conditions for bee foraging activity also allowed for the highest diversity indices in these seasons. However, heterogeneous foraging and low diversity were detected during winter and autumn. Most pollen and honey resources belonged to generalised small flowers of diverse plant lineages. The IRI was more comprehensive to identify the most important pollen resources than the commonly used direct pollen count, as it also includes relative volume and frequency of occurrence, and SI was the most thorough for studying the honey resources. This study provides helpful information for sustainable meliponiculture and forest conservation.

Effects of floral display and abiotic environment on the foraging activity of bees on Kallstroemia pubescens (Zygophyllaceae)

Foraging activity of bees depends on a combination of their biology, floral traits attractive for bees and environmental factors. We carried out this study to determine whether the variation of floral aperture, floral display and environmental factors throughout the day influence the foraging activity and composition of bee visitors in Kallstroemia pubescens (G. Don) Dandy. This research was conducted at the Chamela Biological Station, UNAM, Jalisco, Mexico. During anthesis, we collected bees and recorded the foraging behavior hourly. We measured hourly the environmental factors (temperature, relative humidity, and light intensity), floral aperture, floral display and floral reward. Using generalized linear mixed-effects models we tested which of the factors have more influence on floral aperture and foraging activity. To determine the dissimilarity of the species composition between the hours sampled, we used a one-way analysis of similarity (ANOSIM). We found that light intensity and humidity affected the floral aperture. Likewise, floral aperture, light intensity, temperature and time of day had a higher influence on the frequency of visitation and composition of bee species. When flowers were fully open, we recorded a greater number of bees and species. We observed two types of foraging behavior: bees collecting resources from the top of the flower (pollen gatherers) and bees within the flower avoiding the anthers and stigma (nectar gatherers). The total number of pollen gatherers recorded during our observations was greater than nectar gatherers, suggesting that this is the main floral reward. The species that had the pollen gathering behavior were mainly big bees, Apis mellifera and Exomalopsis zexmeniae, these are the potential pollinators because of their direct contact with the reproductive parts of the flower. Our results show floral aperture and environmental factors in combination influenced the foraging activity of bees, promoting changes in bee community composition throughout the day.

Rangeland Sharing by Cattle and Bees: Moderate Grazing Does Not Impair Bee Communities and Resource Availability

Rangelands are a dominant anthropogenic land use and a main driver of natural habitat loss worldwide. Land sharing, the integration of agricultural production and biodiversity conservation, may provide a platform for managing rangelands to fulfill multiple ecosystem services. However, livestock grazing can greatly affect biodiversity and little is known about its effects on providers of focal ecosystem services, such as pollinators. We investigated the effect of cattle grazing on bee communities and their foraging and nesting resources in Mediterranean rangelands. Specifically, we explored the effect of moderate cattle grazing on flowering plant abundance, species richness and composition, the diversity of nesting substrates, and consequently, the possible effects on wild bee and honey bee foraging activity, species diversity, and community composition. We conducted field research in the Mediterranean rangelands of Israel during the main bee activity season, in the spring of 2012 and 2013, comparing paired cattle-grazed and ungrazed areas. The availability of floral and nesting resources for bees was unaffected or positively affected by grazing. Similarly, wild bee abundance, species richness, and composition were not affected by grazing, but were instead shaped by spatiotemporal factors. Nor was honey bee activity level impaired by grazing. The foraging preferences of bees, as well as flower species composition and peak bloom differed between grazed and ungrazed areas. Therefore, in our studied rangelands, grazing had its main effect on the foraging choices of honey bees and wild bees, rather than on their abundance and diversity. Moreover, our results indicate the potentially important role of ungrazed patches in increasing nectar and pollen diversity and availability in rangelands for both honey bees and wild bees in the spring. Hence, maintaining a mosaic of moderately grazed and ungrazed patches is expected to provide the greatest benefits for wild bee conservation and honey bee activity in Mediterranean rangelands. Our findings support the notion of rangeland sharing by cattle and bees in Mediterranean ecosystems under moderate grazing intensities, mimicking the coexistence of honey bees, wild bees, and cattle in Mediterranean ecosystems on an evolutionary timescale.

Rangeland sharing by cattle and bees: moderate grazing does not impair bee communities and resource availability.

Rangelands are a dominant anthropogenic land use and a main driver of natural habitat loss worldwide. Land sharing, the integration of agricultural production and biodiversity conservation, may provide a platform for managing rangelands to fulfill multiple ecosystem services. However, livestock grazing can greatly affect biodiversity and little is known about its effects on providers of focal ecosystem services, such as pollinators. We investigated the effect of cattle grazing on bee communities and their foraging and nesting resources in Mediterranean rangelands. Specifically, we explored the effect of moderate cattle grazing on flowering plant abundance, species richness and composition, the diversity of nesting substrates, and consequently, the possible effects on wild bee and honey bee foraging activity, species diversity, and community composition. We conducted field research in the Mediterranean rangelands of Israel during the main bee activity season, in the spring of 2012 and 2013, comparing paired cattle-grazed and ungrazed areas. The availability of floral and nesting resources for bees was unaffected or positively affected by grazing. Similarly, wild bee abundance, species richness, and composition were not affected by grazing, but were instead shaped by spatiotemporal factors. Nor was honey bee activity level impaired by grazing. The foraging preferences of bees, as well as flower species composition and peak bloom differed between grazed and ungrazed areas. Therefore, in our studied rangelands, grazing had its main effect on the foraging choices of honey bees and wild bees, rather than on their abundance and diversity. Moreover, our results indicate the potentially important role of ungrazed patches in increasing nectar and pollen diversity and availability in rangelands for both honey bees and wild bees in the spring. Hence, maintaining a mosaic of moderately grazed and ungrazed patches is expected to provide the greatest benefits for wild bee conservation and honey bee activity in Mediterranean rangelands. Our findings support the notion of rangeland sharing by cattle and bees in Mediterranean ecosystems under moderate grazing intensities, mimicking the coexistence of honey bees, wild bees, and cattle in Mediterranean ecosystems on an evolutionary timescale.

An Amazon stingless bee foraging activity predicted using recurrent artificial neural networks and attribute selection

Bees play a key role in pollination of crops and in diverse ecosystems. There have been multiple reports in recent years illustrating bee population declines worldwide. The search for more accurate forecast models can aid both in the understanding of the regular behavior and the adverse situations that may occur with the bees. It also may lead to better management and utilization of bees as pollinators. We address an investigation with Recurrent Neural Networks in the task of forecasting bees’ level of activity taking into account previous values of level of activity and environmental data such as temperature, solar irradiance and barometric pressure. We also show how different input time windows, algorithms of attribute selection and correlation analysis can help improve the accuracy of our model.

Influence of the thermal environment on the stingless bee foraging activity: a mini-review

Influence of the thermal environment on the stingless bee foraging activity: a mini-review