Transcription

1 European Association for Bee Research Newsletter Number 3 April This newsletter aims at giving information about existing research networks and institutions, possible collaborations, forthcoming meetings and other news that can facilitate cooperation in research on bees. Contributions are welcome and should be addressed to: r.paxton@qub.ac.uk Details about membership should be addressed to: dorothea.brueckner@uni-bremen.de Membership fees are included in the conference fee to the 2 nd EurBee Conference in Prague, September If you attend the Prague meeting, you will be able to pay automatically for membership of EurBee until the next 2008 meeting. For those not attending the conference, payment by bank transfer (only) can be made to: account number: at the Postbank Hannover (German bank code: ) BIC: PB NK DE FF IBAN: DE name: Dorothea Brückner/Eurbee The annual fee is euro 10. We kindly ask Members of EurBee to make EurBee more widely known within their country, especially where only few researchers from a country have had the opportunity to attend the Conference in Udine in September

2 In this issue: 1. 2 nd EurBee Conference in Prague, September 2006 register NOW, CALL FOR PAPERS, deadline 30 April 2. XVth IUSSI Congress in Washington, 30 July 4 August 2006 register now, deadline 15 April 3. New developments in Apidologie 4. Bee Shop, a new EU-funded honey bee research project 5. Report of the 2 nd EurBee breeding group meeting, Bologna, January Report on the Modern Apiculture Management Course, Israel, April Call for venues for the 3 rd EurBee Conference in September nd EurBee Conference in Prague, September 2006 CALL FOR PAPERS The Second Circular for EurBee s 2 nd conference can be downloaded at the web address below, where all important and updated information is given, with an on-line registration form: The information published on the website is updated on a regular basis. Moreover, it provides the possibility of on-line registration and submission of applications for active participation in the scientific programme of the conference, accommodation and other services. For those wishing to submit a poster or oral presentation, you must register by 30 April XVth IUSSI Congress in Washington, 30 July 4 August 2006 Registration for the XV International Congress of IUSSI is now available. Both meeting and hotel registration can be done through the same link. Visit the Congress Web site, to reach the link and information about registration, hotel and banquet. At the same time the organisers are Calling for Posters from any members who are not invited Symposium speakers who would like to present their research results. You may be the senior author on only one presentation, either an oral invited symposium 2

3 presentation or a poster. However, you can be a joint author on any number of papers. Senior authors of both invited symposium talks and posters are requested to submit Abstracts for publication in the Congress Proceedings. This year the process will be done entirely on-line. A link to the site for abstract submissions is found on the congress Web page. Instructions for Abstract submittal and creation of posters for display during the Congress are also posted on the Congress Web page. Please read the instructions before submitting your abstract. We are asking poster presenters to affiliate with one of the Symposium topics, if possible, to simplify organization of the poster sessions. Deadline for all abstracts is 15 April New developments in Apidologie As techniques in the scientific publishing field keep evolving, Apidologie has adapted new procedures to ensure a broader and faster dissemination of the scientific results: alerts: This service allows the subscriber to receive an each time new articles of Apidologie are published online. This service is free of charge. Subscribe at: E-First publishing : articles are published in their final form as soon as they have been corrected. It is no longer necessary to have a whole issue ready to access articles. They are citeable by their DOI number. Open Access option: possibility for authors to make their papers freely available to all readers as soon as the articles have been published online. An additional cost of 300 euros (special offer in 2006). Will be charged to authors or their institutions. CrossRef indexation and links in references: this cross-publisher citation linking system allows a researcher to click on a reference citation on one publisher s platform and link directly to the cited content on another publisher s platform, subject to the target publisher s access control practices. All these new facilities put the online version of Apidologie in the forefront of electronic scientific publishing and makes it a major scientific resource for the entire bee research community. Have a look to the Apidologie web page: 4. Bee Shop, a new EU-funded honey bee research project The EC has recently approved funding for a major honey bee research project on sustainable honey production and apiculture, the Bee Shop, a 3 year specific targeted research project within the EU s 6 th Framework Programme. The project is coordinated by Prof Robin Moritz at Halle, and it s kick-off meeting preceded the German Bee research Institutes annual meeting in Hohenheim this March (The acronym Bee Shop derives from: Bees in Europe and Sustainable Honey Production) 3

4 The BEE SHOP is a network of nine leading European honeybee research groups in honey quality, pathology, genetics and behaviour as well as selected beekeeping industries, which all share a common interest in promoting Europe's high honey quality standards. The prime goal is to reduce potential sources of honey contamination due to both foraging contaminated nectar and chemotherapy of honeybee diseases. The BEE SHOP will therefore deal with the development of biological resistance to pests and pathogens to avoid chemotherapy. Various European honeybee races and populations will be screened for their disease resistance potential to the main pressing pathogens. Differences in foraging patterns among European honeybees and their underlying mechanisms will be studied to identify behavioural traits reducing contamination. The impact of honey quality on disease prevention in honeybee colonies will be studied by analysing antimicrobial properties of plant and bee derived compounds in bee products. These new tools for testing honey quality and authenticity will also allow for inspections of honey according to the current EC directives on honey quality and organic beekeeping. Differences in disease susceptibility will be genetically analysed by QTL mapping. Major loci in the genome will be identified with the aid of the published honeybee genome. SNPs will be developed to allow for selection of specific target genes in both drones and queens before insemination. This will greatly accelerate the selection progress in honeybee breeding allowing for the swift establishment of resistant but efficient stock. Bee Shop research project partners are: Robin Moritz, Halle (co-ordinator) Ingemar Fries, Uppsala Robert Paxton, Belfast Martin Giurfa, Toulouse Michel Solignac, Paris Francisco Tomás-Barberán, Murcia Peter Rosenkranz, Hohenheim Jozef Simuth, Bratislava Anna-Gloria Sabatini, Bologna Dalibor Titera, Dol 5. Minutes of the 2 nd EurBee breeding group meeting, Bologna, January 2006 Participants Dalibor Titera (CZ), Nikola Kezic / Dragan Bubalo / Maja Drazic (HR), Ales Gregorc (SLO), Marco Lodesani / Cecilia Costa / Raffaele Dall olio (I), Ralph Büchler / Claudia Garrido / Kaspar Bienefeld (D), Hermann Pechhacker (A), Yves Le Conte (F), Robert Chlebo / Jan Kopernicky / (SK), Inge Kringeland / Liv Mjskja (N) Marco Lodesani welcomed the participants of the meeting in Bologna and gave a short introduction on the activity of the Italian National Institute for Apiculture. Ralph Büchler, coordinator of the group, then presented the meeting, expressing enthusiasm for the growing number of participants and presentations. The meeting was organised according to the 2 working groups defined in Ljubljana the previous year: topics pertaining to the working group on breeding standards during the first day and topics pertaining to the working group on conservation the second day. Honeybee breeding programs and general selection methods 4

5 Hermann Pechhacker, coordinator, gave an overview of the working group s aims and activity. Not having received much feedback from the other participants in the group he concludes that the general breeding rules are clear. The common breeding goals are productivity, Varroa tolerance, gentleness/calmness, low swarming tendency. He suggests that the priority for the future are Varroa tolerance and gentleness. Open questions and points of discussion concern the number of sister queens evaluated in progeny testing: from recent calculations carried out by Kaspar Bienefeld it appears that less than 12 sisters are needed if information from parents and relatives is available, while it is important that per tester and per apiary there are at least 4 colonies; another common problem in the testing is how to convince beekeepers carrying out the evaluations to use the whole range of points (important to show variation); also the doubt remains concerning a standard method to judge selection criteria for varroa tolerance. This group should discuss whether the breeding goals are suitable and how they can be improved; how population size should be increased (especially for endangered species); how to integrate molecular criteria into race definition criteria. Ralph Büchler suggested that by the next meeting the group should prepare an update for the Apimondia breeding standards, containing recommendations regarding the estimation of breeding values, the size of the progeny testing group, the spread of the sister queens. Kaspar Bienefeld presented the progress reached in the German honeybee population, as a consequence of using the breeding values obtained by applying the BLUP animal model with maternal effects (especially modified for the honeybee). This system is now used by most German breeders, by the Austrian Carnica Association (ACA) and by the Italian Bee Breeders Register. Selection on Varroa tolerance and hygienic behaviour Ralph Büchler presented an overview on the German selection program for Varroa tolerance, which is organised on two levels: the beekeepers carry out routine selection on a large population, according to general criteria (productivity and behavioural characteristics) and tolerance criteria (varroa infestation during the season and hygienic behaviour); the beekeeping research institutes carry out selection on the best performing colonies under high infestation pressure (viability test and tolerance mating stations). Kaspar Bienefeld reported on how the above described varroa tolerance data is analysed, presented the preliminary genetic correlations between traits used to describe Varroa tolerance, showed the importance of considering the population growth of the mite during the whole year rather than absolute infestation values. Claudia Garrido presented the first results of viability testing (overwintering of colonies without treatment) in which the importance of different parameters for survival was evaluated. Ralph Büchler reported on the concept and first results of tolerance mating stations: mating stations in which drones which have undergone a high varroa infestation pressure are used. Marco Lodesani reported on the possibilities of testing for hygienic behaviour in open brood and showed that no correlation was found between the removal of the 2 kinds of brood. Concerning hygienic behaviour Claudia Garrido reported that no correlation was found in a comparison between the two methods, pin test and freezekilling with liquid nitrogen, results from which are therefore not comparable; Claudia also reported on ongoing research concerning Varroa-induced hygiene. Lastly Hermann Pechhacker illustrated an instrument especially designed to clean varroa drop down sheets, in order to guarantee accurate counting of the fallen mites. Conservation of European honeybee gene resources Yves Le Conte presented the report of the working group on conservation. The news from Gabriele Soland in Switzerland is that the whole Canton of Glaros was accepted as a conservation area for A.m.m.; unfortunately no funds are available for genetic 5

6 analyses, useful to detect hybrids.a second project for a protection zone received financing by the government but was refused by the beekeepers! The news from Karl Pfeiffer in Austria is that the project on the distribution of the autochthonous bee subspecies in Austria was cancelled because of financial reasons. In France there is a project in collaboration with Lionel Garnery to make a survey on biodiversity of A. mellifera in France using mitochondrial and nuclear (microsatellites) markers. Other initiatives to preserve A.m.m. in France include conservation areas, sperm cryoconservation, gene expression depending on the race investigations. The good news is that breeders from the national association ANERCEA are very interested in preserving A.m.m. and asked for help in developing selection strategies. The breeding strategies and programmes from Norway (Liv Myskja) and Croatia (Nikola Kezic) were presented; recent developments in the breeding programmes of Slovenia (Ales Gregorc) and Slovakia (Robert Chlebo) were presented. Molecular genetics Raffaele Dall Oliio reported the results of an investigation on microsatellite variability in Italian honeybees, which showed that variability of A.m.ligustica is widespread throughout Italy but no evidence of genetic structure was found; microsatellites proved to be a powerful tool for distinction between subspecies and also to distinguish hybrids. Dalibor Titera reported on the characterisation of A.m.carnica using microsatellite analyses and underlined the importance of determining standards among labs in order to compare the results and establish a tissue bank. Final discussion and conclusions All participants were happy about the meeting, the number of participants and presentations, the new members, and supported an ongoing cooperation, although there was recognition of the fact that standardization of methods (such as evaluation of hygienic behaviour, scoring system, microsatellite analysis) will take time to achieve. The fact that several countries are currently adopting the same method for the evaluation of breeding values shows that steps in this direction are being taken. The group agreed that during the next meeting one or two common goals could be defined and it could work together to reach them in a coordinated way. Working groups The group agreed that the working groups should meet in satellite meetings during the 2 nd Eurbee Conference which will be held in Prague September 2006, to prepare and discuss draft concepts for the next meeting. International research projects Robert Chlebo examined the difficulties of funding bee research projects in the 7 th framework programme which has Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology as priority, and welcomed suggestions and proposals. Next meeting Although Kaspar Bienefeld was the first to volunteer Hohen Neuendorf as seat of the next meeting, the group, on the basis of climatic criteria, preferred Avignon, France, where the next meeting will be held at the beginning of Yves Le Conte takes over the local organization. Protocol: Cecilia Costa 6

7 6. Report on the Modern Apiculture Management Course, Israel, April 2005 The Modern Apiculture Management Course (Honey, By-Products and Pollination) was held in Kibbutz Shefayim in Israel between 29 March and 19 April The course was organized by MASHAV (the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Israel Center for International Cooperation) and CINADCO (the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Center for International Agricultural Development Cooperation). It mainly ran in MASHAV s training center in Kibbutz Shefayim. Diverse lectures were given on the subjects of: Introduction to Israel, its land, people and settlements. Genetics, anatomy, physiology and biology of the honey bee. Hive management and production. Crop pollination. Queen rearing. Economics of production. Mechanisation and technology. Sanitation and health. The course consisted of lectures, discussions and field trips. Lectures were given by the specialists of universities, agricultural extension service, governmental institutions and commercial bee keepers. It concluded with the final paper presentations which were prepared by groups of participants. Totally 25 participants from 17 countries and 4 continents participated in the course. Participants mainly joined the course from governmental organisations, universities and NGOs. During the course many apiaries, honey processing units, orchards and a bumble bee production plant were visited as field trips related with the course education. Also, many excursions were made to historical and religious centres, such as to Jerusalem, the Dead Sea, Tel-Aviv and Nazareth. The course was ended with the final paper presentations and all participants left Israel with good knowledge, experience and memories. M. Ulas Cinar 7. Call for venues for the 3 rd EurBee Conference in September 2008 The venue for the 3 rd EurBee Conference in September 2008 has yet to be set. If you have an interest in putting on the congress of over 300 participants, please contact Prof. Dorothea Brückner at: dorothea.brueckner@uni-bremen.de A great expression of thanks goes to those EurBee members and others who contributed material to this newsletter. EurBee Board members: Dorothea Brückner, Bremen (secretary); Norberto Milani, Udine; Robert Paxton, Belfast (newsletter); Dalibor Titera, Dol (local organiser/prague conference); Bernard Vaissiere, Avignon; Ingemar Fries (co-opted member and coordinator of the scientific programme of EurBee s Prague conference). 7