Development of pollen substitutes for dearth period management of honeybee (Apis mellifera) colonies in foothills of Shivalik range of Himalayas

Abstract

Experiment was conducted to develop efficient and cheap pollen substitute for dearth period management of honeybee (Apis mellifera) colonies. Bee colonies were provided six different pollen substitutes viz., full fat soy flour (FFSF), roasted full fat soy flour (RFFSF), germinated soybean flour (GSF), defatted soy flour (DFSF), roasted defatted soy flour (RDFSF), soy protein concentrate (SPC) and compared with the control (no feeding) to determine their impact on desirable attributes of bee colonies. Results indicated that the per cent palatability of all the diets were more than 60%. A gradual increase in brood area, honey store and pollen store were observed after feeding in all the diet combination, viz SPC, followed by GSF, DFSF, FFSF and RDFSF. All the desirable parameters were found to be least in RFFSF. However, all the diets were found significantly superior over control. Significant increase in the foraging activity of the bees was found to be in colonies fed with pollen substitute. Cost and shelf-life of these patties were also calculated, in support of the adoption of these patties. Present work revealed that SPC was the best substitute for bees during the dearth period.