Bees for Development Journal Edition 3 - December 1982

Information Sheets on

Tropical Apiculture published by International Bee Research Association, Hill House, Gerrards Cross, Bucks SL9 ONR, England

NEWSLETTER No.

3

December 1982

The Newsletter is issued to let you know what is being done at the Bee Research Association.concerning tropical apiculture, and how you can help in it.

Please send items of news, and details and dates

International

of conferences for inclusion.

1.

PUBLICATIONS FROM IBRA

"Publications and visual aids on apiculture A new list is enclosed: ‘This list for the tropics and subtropics obtainable from IBRA" (0/21). indicates which of the publications can be obtained free of charge, and it quotes the prices of the others.

New

publications since Newsletter

No. 2

include:

reviews, Development of chalk brood in a honeybee colony, and Chalk brood pathogens, are published together as Reprint M110 from 1982 Bee World.

Tn them Dr. L.A.F. Heath gives detailed information on tne life Two

cycle of the causative fungus Ascosphaera apis, and up-to-date information about the control of chalk brood.

Price 1.15 or USS2.50, post paid.

Viruses of honeybees (Reprint M111) by Dr. L. Bailey (1982) describes 11 honeybee viruses identified at Rothamsted since 1975: cloudy wing virus, bee virus Y (and the relationship with bee virus X), black queen cell virus, acute bee-paralysis vir.s, filamentous virus, chronic bee-paralysis virus, Egypt bee virus, Arkansas bee virus, Thai sacbrood virus, Kashmir bee virus and Apis iridescent virus.

A table gives the dimensions and morphology of Price 95p or US$2.30 post paid. the known 18 honeybee viruses.

2.

CAN YOU

HELP?

World survey of mites associated with bees

Dr. Mercedes Delfinado-Baker has recently discovered a new species of Tropilaelaps, IT. koenigerum, in Sri Lanka. Since 1961, when she first identified T. clareae in the Philippines in conjunction with Dr. E.W. Baker, she has been steadily contributing to our knowledge of mites that infest Dr. Delfinado-Baker is now undertaking a world survey of mites bees.

She seeks our help in providing samples from differassociated with bees. ent countries.

Samples of any bee species are required, including honeybees: Apis mellifera, Apis cerana, Apis dorsata, Apis florea.

The announcement of the survey in Bee World No. 4 1982 (pages 178-179) includes the following guidelines to ensure that the samples are packed correctly and that sufficient information is recorded.

Samples required: up to 50 bees that have been dead less than 24 hours; partially decomposed bees are useless.

Keep separate samples from hives in

different locations.

OR a piece of brood comb about the size of a hand OR, for stingless bees, a whole nest if small, otherwise the size of a closed hana.

Packing samples;

a sample about

4

pack and send without delay, end meanwhile freeze at as low a temperaDO NOT send in an airtight container such as a ture as possible. plastic bag or tin box, or in envelopes unprotected against being Use match--boxes, or similer cardboard consquashed in the post.

Do not put paper tissues inside them. tainers.

Jabel the box(es) from each hive or nest clearly A, B, C and label the corresponding record to match the sample.

Record to be supplied with each sample: Send the following details with the sample, on a sheet of paper no% folded more than is necessary: ; Identification mark of the corresponding sample: A, B, C Date of collection Name and address of sender Location of colony, to within 4 km Symptoms: whole colony dead? colony weakened? adult bees died?

other symptoms? are neighbouring colonies/apieries equally affected? how far away are they?

For Apis species: what other Apis species are in the locality?

Number of colonies believed to be affected, out of total number of Conditions of colonies at last examination: date; strength, number of frames of brood, number of honey supers on hive; state of health For Meliponinae: other genera/species in the area, as far as is know (if samples of adult bees are sent, these will be identified) ...

Identification

and report: Within a few weexs, Dr. Delfinedo-Raker will write to the person providing each sample, identifying any mites found, and stating whether or not they are harmful to the bees.

Othex useful information will be included if possible, and the sender will also receive details of the final report of the survey when published.

Address for sending: Dr. Mercedes Delfinado-Baker, Systematic Entomology Laboratory, USDA, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA.

"Source

|

leaflets

Copies of the ten leaflets listed in the last Newsletter and in the enclosed list were sent out in June 1982, free of charge, to all the Institutions that have received copies of the Bibliography of Tropical Apiculture.

Elsewhere copies of individual leaflets have been sent on request, free of charge, to addresses in developing countries, and IBRA still has some of the

leaflets for distribution.

Will readers of tne Newsletter do anything they can to make these leaflets more widely known? Many people who have already received them have found thei most useful.

Explain that they are available, free of

e

-3-

charge, from the Information Officer for Tropical Apiculture. at InterYou Gan help by? 70 “national Bee Research Association.

Putting them on show in your institution or library. .

Mentioning them in any Newsletters.

Writing an article about them for your beekeeping journal.

We should also very much like to know how useful these leaflets are, which of them are most helpful and what other subjects you would like to deal with in the same way.

36

~

us

SURVEY OF WORLD HONEY SOURCES

IBRA has been successful in obtaining funds. from the International Development Research Council, Ottawa, for the compilation and publication of a Directory of important world honey sources.

The Directory will include source of honey. up to 800 plants that are, somewhere in the world, a The leaflet Source Materials for Apiculture (SAM) No. 3 "Planting for bees in developing countries" some idea of what the Directory entries will

oe

gives look like.

A survey of published and unpublished information was started at I5RA in 1979, to make an index of plants producing a honey surplus (and pollen), “honeydew and propolis, with a grant awarded by UNESCO to the International Commission for Bee Botany.

A card index of 2500 plants reported as honey sources in 46 countries was built up, which is being for entries drawn upon for the Directory now being prepared.

In a future issue of the Newsletter we will be requesting the help of ~ readers for. in specific cotintries on important honey sources where we haye little or no information.

4.

BOOK GRANTS

As mentioned in Newsletter No. 2, IBRA is preparing a list of further would derive special benefit from a presentation of Over the last two years a number of libraries have beekeeping books. received book presentations funded by grant-aid awarded to IBRA from the Commonwealth Foundation and the Overseas Development Administration (UK).

These libraries are listed in leaflet SAM No. 7 "Obtaining apicultural information for use in developing countries", obtainable from IBRA. There is still time for your Institution to be considered.

Please send to me quickly the following details: 1. institution where books would be housed.

Does this already have established If does it cover? what an library? so, ee and of in length (a) Type training apiculture, or

Institutions that

;

(b) Details of apicultural research, including of research workers

36

De

Any

names

and

subjects

available leaflets about the Institution, e.g. annual report.

FUTURE: EVENTS

Primer Cologuio Am ricano sobre la Abeja Africana (First American Seminar on the Africanized Be ‘) 27 to 30 April 1983 in San Pedro Sula, Honduras.

The Main themes of the Seminar will be the spread of thé Africanized bee through the Americas, concentrating on the preparation that countries of Central America must make in anticipation of its arrival, and the impact of beeThe Seminar languages will be keeping in integrated rural development.

Spanish and English. details are available from Ing. H.G. ‘Gu 1illén, Fuller Apartado No. 1247, 13 Ave. N.w. No. 2, Entre 5 y 6 Calle, Barrio Los Andes, San Pedro Sula, Honduras.

-~4-—A 5=-week course on "Introductory. apiculCourses at Ohio State University. ture for the tropics and subtropics" will be held (in English) at The Ohio State University Agriculture Technical Institute (ATI), Wooster, OH 44691, Students will attend from 1 July to 5 a,gust 1983, and details are USA. From 11 to 29 July participants obtainable from Dr. George Kreps at iTI. Seminar arranged by ATI in co-operation with join the Development Beekeeping for which the contact the International Agency for Apiculture Development, is Dr. Norman Stanley at ATI.

This will be neld from 25 to 31 eyth International Beekeeping Longress .

The fee for the Congress will be US$125 in fugust 1983 Budapest, Hungary. for participants, US#100 for accompanying persons, and US#12 for a single Bee supply firms and beekeeping institutions are invited day's attendance, to participate in a World Apicultural Exhibition to be held in the large new stadium in Budapest in’ with the Congress; the charge will be conjunction US#54 per square metre.

‘Enquiries should be sent to: Mr. S. Kocsis, President of the National Organizing Committee, 29 Nemzetkozi Mehesz Kongresszus, Szervezo Bizottsaga, Budapest VY, Garibaldi utca 2, 1054 Hungary. ne special themes of the Congress will be Science and technical The progress of beekeeping, and Practical control of varroa disease.

Committee will, however accept scientific papers on any topic of beekeeping.

Scientific papers for presentation must be received by 1 May 1983; 3 copies are required, and also of a summary by 1 February 1983.

They should be sent to Apimondia, Vittorio Emanuele 101, 00186 Rome, Italy. ;

;

Yonterence

On

npicuiture

Lrovice pt

Climates.

This will

to 9 November 1984, in the Kenyatta International Conference It is convened by the International Bee Research Centre, Nairobi, Kenya. association, and is hosted by the Government of K,nya in collaboration with the Organisation of African Unity.

Contributions relating to apiculture in the tropics and subtropics are invited.

The Conference iangueges- will bé English and French, with simultaneous transiation.

This is the special international conference for apiculture specialists from developing countries. 50 make enauiries straight away about the We are hoping for an espepossibility of obtaining funds to attend it. cially good representation from African countries, but other parts of the tropics will also be dealt’ with, in the sessions which have the following ake place on

5

provisional titles: i.e

B. C. De. KH.

B, Ge

H.

I. J.

Apicultural problems in African countries Apicultural problems in other tropical countries Characteristics of African and other tropical horeybees

Eee management and hives Honeys and other hive products, and their quality control Injuries to bees by diseases, pests and pesticides Pollination of crops by bees

Beekeeping training and education Beekeeping in integrated rural development economics of beekeeping, including marketing of products.

The First Circular, with fuller details of the Conference, is now available fromthe Conference Secretariat (Ministry of. Livestock-Develop--

ment, Beekeeping Section,

PO

Box 68228,

Nairobi, Kenya),

Margarct DVixon

or

from-TBRA.~

information Officer for Tropical spicultvre