Worker Honey Bee Response to Infection with Nosema apis: Influence of Diet123

Abstract

In 2 experiments, adult workers of Apis mellifera L. were individually fed either spores of Nosema apis Zander or a sucrose solution and then transferred on the basis of common treatment to cages. The 2 treatment groups were each subdivided into 2 further groups. One was fed only syrup and the other was fed syrup and proteinaceous food. In one experiment, the proteinaceous food was mixed-floral-source pollen; in the other experiment, food was a pollen substitute. Protein food increased both the longevity of bees, whether or not they received spores, and also increased Nosema spore development. While spore feeding generally reduced longevities in both experiments, the numerical difference between longevities of spore-fed-bees and bees not fed spores was greater when the bees were feci protein. Thus, protein food increased the usefulness of mortality as a measure of worker bee response to Nosema infection.