Bees need healthy diets to produce healthy offspring, according to a study by Hebrew University of Jerusalem researchers.
According to a recent study in Animal Behaviour, a balanced diet is essential for honeybees’ optimal health and task performance, a critical species for pollination, ecosystem stability and honey for a sweet new year.
The study—led by professor Sharoni Shafir from the Hebrew University Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food, and Environment, along with postdoctoral fellow Danny Minahan and student Maya Goren—investigates how honeybees balance their nutritional intake to maintain homeostasis and enhance fitness. The findings indicate that an unbalanced diet with a high omega-6:3 ratio (5:1) significantly affects bees’ ability to nurse larvae, both in delay and frequency, as well as in the attention given to larvae of different ages.
In the study, day-old adult worker bees were fed either a balanced or an unbalanced diet for a week. The bees were then released into a common-garden hive, tagged with barcodes and continuously filmed for six days. The analysis revealed that those on the unbalanced diet exhibited delayed nursing behavior and reduced efficiency in caring for larvae, particularly in differentiating between three-day-old and four-day-old larvae.
“Balanced nutrition is fundamental for honeybee colonies, impacting not just individual health but also the overall efficiency and survival of the hive,” says Shafir. “Our study underscores the importance of maintaining a balanced omega-6:3 ratio in the diet of honeybees to ensure they can perform their crucial roles within the colony effectively.”
The implications of this research are far-reaching, particularly in cultivated landscapes where the availability of nutritionally balanced pollen sources may be limited. The shift towards a greater omega-6:3 ratio in these areas could pose a significant threat to bee populations, affecting their health, cognitive abilities and ability to sustain their colonies.
“This study opens new avenues for further research linking fitness-related behaviors to nutritional balancing in honeybees,” added Shafir. “It also highlights the need for conservation efforts to ensure diverse and nutritionally adequate pollen sources are available for these essential pollinators.”
The research aligns with broader findings in other species, where nutritional imbalances are known to affect survival, reproductive success and offspring health. It calls for increased awareness and measures to support the nutritional needs of honeybees, essential for maintaining their populations and the vital pollination services they provide.
The research paper titled “Unbalanced dietary omega-6:3 ratio affects the onset of nursing and nurse–larvae interactions by honey bees, Apis mellifera” is available in Animal Behaviour and can be accessed here.
Researchers: Danny Minahan, Maya Goren, Sharoni Shafir; Institution: B. Triwaks Bee Research Center, Department of Entomology, Institute of Environmental Sciences, the Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
