Influence of Chlorella supplemented diet on honey bee (Apis mellifera) colony health

Artículo

Microalgae have received scientific attention for alternative food source for honey bees due to its remarkable nutritional composition, often comparable and even superior to bee pollen. Our previous study demonstrated that Chlorella sorokiana-supplement diet improved honey bee (Apis mellifera) longevity, development, and physiology in the cage. In the sequence of the previous study, we investigated the role Chlorella as a dietary supplement on honey bee at the colony level. We formulated feed with 0.5, 2, 5, and 10 percent Chlorella supplemented with commercial rapeseed pollen patty and assessed diet preference, quality of royal jelly, development of worker, honey bee colony strength for different diets. The results revealed that diets adding Chlorella represented positive effect in consumption, body weight of newly emerged worker, colony strength in terms of number of broods and worker, and 10-HDA of royal jelly compare to controls. Therefore, 2 percent Chlorella addition to pollen patty may be proposed as a feed additive for performance improvement of honey bee at colony level.