Love it or hate it? How honey bees respond to virus in food

Authors: Simone-Finstrom, Michael; McCarthy, Joseph; Walsh, Elizabeth; Payne, Alexandria

Submitted to: Bee Culture
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/1/2025
Publication Date: 6/1/2025
Citation: Simone-Finstrom, M., Mccarthy, J.E., Walsh, E.M., Payne, A.N. 2025. Love it or hate it? How honey bees respond to virus in food. Bee Culture. https://doi.org/10.55406/ABRC.6.25.2.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.55406/ABRC.6.25.2

Interpretive Summary: Honey bees are threatened by a number of viruses that are transmitted among bees in the hive and through shared food sources. We do not currently know if bees are able to detect viruses at feeding sites, or if they can how that influences their behavior. This is key knowledge to determine if and how viruses at flowers and other food resources may lead to future infection. Controlled laboratory and field studies were conducted to determine if bees prefer or avoid sugar syrup contaminated with deformed wing virus (DWV), black queen cell virus, or chronic bee paralysis virus. Honey bees showed some preferences for viral-laced syrup in the Fall, but in Spring they avoided viral solutions or showed no preference under lab conditions. In the field, we confirmed that bees prefer sugar solution contaminated with DWV in the Fall. Based on these results we have concluded that honey bees can detect viruses in food sources, and that under certain conditions they may be attracted to them.

Technical Abstract: Viruses are nearly ubiquitous among and within honey bee colonies, but can vary based on season and the presence of particular vectors and stressors. Largely single-strand RNA viruses, they can be transmitted sexually, vertically, horizontally, through vectors and even through shared food resources. More information about bees’ ability to detect viruses at feeding sites is needed to understand their potential spread in the environment. In a series of experiments, caged honey bees were given a choice of two sucrose solutions, one treated with various field-relevant doses of virus (deformed wing virus [DWV], black queen cell virus or chronic bee paralysis virus) and one without virus. Honey bees showed context-dependent choices for the viral-laced sucrose, depending on viral type, dose and season in the laboratory. For example, bees exhibited some preferences for viral solutions in Fall, but in Spring they avoided viral solutions or showed no preference. A field-preference assay corroborated the Fall preference for a high dose of DWV in open foraging conditions. The mechanisms involved are currently being explored and remains unknown, but based on these data, we conclude that honey bees can detect viruses in a food source and given the conditions may be attracted them.