Selecting honey bees for resistance to Varroa jacobsoni

Abstract

This report describes a systematic approach to selecting honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) for resistance to Varroa jacobsoni Oudemans. The equation (P1 (ab)(n) = P2) describes the growth of the mite population in a colony of honey bees that has a constant supply of worker brood. P1 and P2 are the initial and final mite populations, a is population change while mites are in brood cells, b is population change outside brood cells and n is the number of reproductive cycles of the mite. By comparing the growth of mite populations in each colony (P2/P1), one can determine which bees are more resistant to mites. The values of a, b and n provide details about the growth of the mite population by identifying which portion of the mite's reproductive cycle was affected. Selection should be based on specific characteristics of bees rather than on general changes in mite populations. When specific characteristics of bees affect different components of the reproductive cycle of the mite, it may be possible to combine the characteristics to produce bees that are more resistant to mites.