Selective+breeding+for+grooming+behaviour+(PRM)


 * Selective breeding for grooming behaviour in bees**

One long term strategy for //Varroa// mite control being seriously considered is selective breeding of resistant traits in bees.

One of these traits is the grooming behaviour that //A. cerana// displays. The bees groom both themselves, and nest mates resulting in an extremely rapid and effective expulsion of mites. In //A. cerana// observation hives, around 98% of introduced mites were removed from the bees and killed within a few minutes (Peng,Ying-Shin 1987). //A. cerana// is also known to entomb parasitised drone brood. This drone brood appears to be the most favourable place for //V. destructor// to reproduce, and thus is another effective technique to limit mite populations. The results of these grooming behaviours at first glance appear to be very promising, however they must be treated with caution as mites from other honey bee species were used. It could be that the foreign attributes of these mites may have induced an elevation in grooming behaviour. Reproducing the experiments with mites of the same species produced significantly lower amounts of grooming (Fries,I. 1996).

Another adaptation of some bees is known as hygienic behaviour, which involves the uncapping and removal of dead or parasitised brood cells. The removal of the infested brood unfortunately does not guarantee the death of the mites. What it does, however, is interrupt their reproductive cycles causing an extended “homeless” period which may lead to death (Boecking,Otto 1999). Unfortunately, the genetic variance and heritability of these traits is largely unknown, but they do provide promising potential starting points for selective breeding.

media type="youtube" key="EAhUWscg-50?fs=1" height="385" width="480" In this video, many bees can be spotted grooming each other.

media type="youtube" key="g1yXO648Zto?fs=1" height="385" width="480" This video shows (at the start) a bee 'asking' for grooming with a vigorous shaking of its body.