Behavioral responses of the small hive beetle, Aethina tumida, to odors of three meliponine bee species and honey bees, Apis mellifera scutellata

Authors: BOBADOYE, BRIDGET - International Centre Of Insect Physiology And Ecology; FOMBONG, AYUKA - International Centre Of Insect Physiology And Ecology; KIATOKO, NKOBA - International Centre Of Insect Physiology And Ecology; SURESH, RAINA - International Centre Of Insect Physiology And Ecology; Teal, Peter; SALIFU, DAISY - International Centre Of Insect Physiology And Ecology; TORTO, BALDWYN - International Centre Of Insect Physiology And Ecology

Submitted to: Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/5/2018
Publication Date: 8/8/2018
Citation: Bobadoye, B.O., Fombong, A.T., Kiatoko, N., Suresh, R., Teal, P.E., Salifu, D., Torto, B. 2018. Behavioral responses of the small hive beetle, Aethina tumida, to odors of three meliponine bee species and honey bees, Apis mellifera scutellata. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata. doi:10.1111/eea.12700.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/eea.12700

Interpretive Summary: Honeybees, bumble bees and some stingless bees (generally known as meliponine bees) can be hosts of the small hive beetle (SHB) Aethina tumida, an insect pest of honeybee colonies in various regions of the world. Location by odors has been implicated in SHB infestations of honey and bumble bee colonies. However, the mechanism by which the beetle locates meliponine bee colonies is not known. Researchers from the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) in Nairobi, Kenya and the ARS Chemistry Research Unit in Gainesville, FL used dual-choice olfactometer bioassays to investigate responses of adult male and female SHBs to odors from intact colony and colony matrix components (pot honey, pot pollen, cerumen and propolis [bee-made substances from beeswax and tree resin]) of the three African meliponine species. Both sexes of the SHB strongly preferred intact colony, pot honey, and pot pollen odors, but were generally indifferent to propolis odors, they clearly avoided cerumen odors from the three meliponine bee species. Both sexes of the SHB also strongly preferred odors from honeybees over odors from the three meliponine bee species. These results provide the first evidence of the host potential of African meliponine bees for the SHB, offer clues to understanding how the SHB locate their hosts, and could eventually be used to help protect honeybees from this important insect pest.

Technical Abstract: Recent studies have shown that honey bees, bumble bees, and somemeliponine bee species of the genera Trigona, Meliponula, and Dactylurina are hosts of the small hive beetle (SHB) Aethina tumida Murray (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae), a pest of honey bee colonies in various regions of the world. Olfaction has been implicated in SHB infestations of honey bee and bumble bee colonies. We used olfactometer bioassays to investigate responses of adult male and female SHBs to odors from intact colonies and separate hive components (pot honey, pot pollen, cerumen, and propolis) of three African meliponine bee species,Meliponula ferruginea (Lepeletier) (black morphospecies), M. ferruginea (reddish brown morphospecies), and Meliponula bocandei (Spinola) (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Although both sexes of the beetle strongly preferred intact colony, pot honey, and pot pollen odors, there was no evidence of attraction to propolis and cerumen odors from the three meliponine bee species. Both sexes of SHB also strongly preferred odors from honey bees, Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae), over odors from the three meliponine bee species. Our results provide substantial evidence of the host potential of African meliponine bees for the SHB, and we discuss this complex association of the SHB with species within the Apidae family.