BEENET: ITALIAN BEEKEEPING MONITORING NETWORK

Porrini C1, Lodesani M2, Libertà A3, Bortolotti L2, Gallina A4, Colombo R2, Sgolastra F1, Medrzycki P2, Bozza MA4, Mutinelli F4

1DipSA, Università di Bologna, Italy; 2Consiglio nazionale per la Ricerca e la sperimentazione in Agricoltura (CRA) Bologna, Italy;

3Sistema Informativo Nazionale per lo sviluppo dell’agricoltura (SIN) Roma, Italy, 4Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle

Venezie, Legnaro (Padova) Italy

BeeNet� BeeNet is a network for studying bees-environment interactions

and monitoring honeybee mortality and colony losses in Italy

� The BeeNet monitoring network was activated in September 2011, with an increase of the number of apiaries compared to the previous ApeNet network (2009-2010)

� In 2011 there were 97 apiaries for a total of approximately one thousand beehives

� In 2012 the monitoring network progressed up to 303 apiaries located in all the Italian regions with approximately three thousand beehives

Location of the monitoring units involved in the BeeNet project

Coordination centre

Apiary composed of 10 hives

BeeNet

The investigation aimed to:

� Colony development and environment data collection

� Nosema apis/Nosema ceranae

� Deformed Wing Virus (DWV), � Acute Bee Paralysis Virus (ABPV)� Chronic Bee Paralysis Virus (CBPV)� Beebread protein content� Beebread pesticide residues

Materials & Methods� Each monitoring unit is composed of five apiaries with ten

beehives each� managed by a referent person who is in charge to carry out

visits at 4 different time points: � 1st, end of Winter; � 2nd, Spring-Summer; � 3rd, end of Summer-beginning of Autumn; � 4th, before wintering.

� Colonies are visually inspected� In each inspection several parameters of each colony are

considered:� health and nutritional condition, � number of bees and brood, � queen’s age,� climate, land use

M & M

� At visit 1 and 3, samples of beehive matrices are collected: beebread and live honey bees

� Chemical (beebread pesticides), pathology (Nosema, virus and Varroa) and nutritional (beebread raw protein) analyses

M & M

� The data observed are transmitted by referent person of the monitoring unit using software facilities for data-entry

� the software facilities are activated via internet connections

� the data collected are stored in a georeferred database

ResultsVarroa destructor infestation

In Marche (6.3%) and Lazio (3.9%) (central Italy), Campania (3.3%) and Puglia (3.0%) (southern Italy) regions the highest infestation levels were recorded, the lowest ones in Toscana (0.3%) (central Italy) and Emilia-Romagna (0.5%) (northern Italy) regions at the 3rd visit (end of Summer-beginning of Autumn)

Le Isole Åland sono un arcipelago della Finlandia composta da più di 6.500 tra isole e scogli all'ingresso del Golfo di Botnia, acirca 40 km dalla costa svedese e 25 km da quella finlandese.

DECISIONE DI ESECUZIONE DELLA COMMISSIONE dell’11 ottobre 2013

relativa al riconoscimento di parti dell’Unione come indenni dalla varroasi nelle api e che stabilisce le garanzie complementari richieste

per gli scambi all’interno dell’Unione e per le importazioni a tutela della loro indennità da tale malattia

(2013/503/UE)

(GUUE L 273, 38-39 del 15.10.2013 )

Results

� N. ceranae was present in all Italian regions� N. apis or N. apis/N. ceranae co-infection were

not detected� Of the 620 samples analyzed, 454 were positive

for N. ceranae with an overall positivity rate of 73%

� Only in 3.4% of the samples more than 10 million N. ceranae spores per bee were detected

Nosema ceranae

Results of the analyses directed to the determination of Nosema spp.

Results - Nosema 2009

Negative

samples 42%Nosema

ceranae 58%

Nosema apis

0%

Italian regions Nosema ceranae

Nosema apis

Veneto �

Prov. Auton. Bolzano �

Prov. Auton. Trento �

Liguria �

Emilia Romagna �

Toscana �

Marche �

Lazio �

Abruzzo �

Umbria �

Sardegna �

Molise �

Campania �

Basilicata �

Puglia �

Calabria �

Sicilia �

Negative samplePositive sample

No

rth I

taly

Ce

ntra

l Italy

So

uth

Ita

ly

Viruses� DWV, ABPV and CBPV were detected in Italian apiaries in

different combinations

� DWV was present in almost all samples (96.7%) � In 40% of cases exceeded 10 million viral copies per bee

� For ABPV and CBPV the percentages were lower, 53.6 and 57.7% respectively

� The samples that exceeded 10 million viral copies per bee were only 5.9 and 5.4%, respectively

Viruses

Results of the analyses directed to the determination of viruses

Results – Viruses 2009

79%

78%

27%

22%

8,5%

0%

0%

0%

DWV

BQCV

SBV

ABPV

CBPV

KBV

IAPV

AIVSouth Italy

Positive

82%

Negative

18%

66%

19%

6%

9%

0%

0%

0%

76%

DWV

BQCV

SBV

ABPV

CBPV

KBV

IAPV

AIV

Negative

32%

Positive

68%

North Italy

86%

72%

15%

4%

1,7%

0,87%

0%

0%

DWV

BQCV

SBV

ABPV

CBPV

KBV

IAPV

AIV Central Italy

Negative

28%

Positive

72%

Results – Viruses 2010

0%

2,5%

0%

14%

18%

55%

96%

87%DWV

BQCV

SBV

ABPV

CBPV

KBV

IAPV

AIV

Central Italy

Positive

94%

Negative

6%

86%

96%

72%

51%

6%

0%

0%

0%

DWV

BQCV

SBV

ABPV

CBPV

KBV

IAPV

AIV

South Italy

Positive

99,3%

Negative

0,7%

59%

93%

49%

13%

11%

4,6%

0%

0%

DWV

BQCV

SBV

ABPV

CBPV

KBV

IAPV

AIV

North Italy

Negative

3,5%

Positive

96,5%

Beebread protein content and pesticides

� In Autumn 2011, the beebread contained a lower percentage of protein and pesticides, compared to Spring 2012

� In Spring 2012, the colonies located in the south of Italy contained beebread with the highest protein content and positivity to pesticides of the country

In Autumn 2011, 22 different active ingredients were found: carbaryl (7.2% of the samples, range: 11-82 ppb), chlorpyriphos (4.0%, 8-47 ppb)fluvalinate (3.2%, 17-150 ppb)

� Only one sample contained neonicotinoids (imidacloprid, 16 ppb)

In Spring 2012, 50 different active ingredients were found: fluvalinate (14.5%, 15-134 ppb)chlorfenvinphos (12.8%, 19-126 ppb) chlorpyriphos-ethyl (8.5%, 8-109 ppb)

� Among neonicotinoids, imidacloprid (2.6%, 12-62 ppb) and thiamethoxam (1 sample, 18 ppb) were found

Beebread protein content and pesticides

Results of the analyses directed to the determination of protein content and pesticides

Results - ResiduesSample

type

Area % positives

2009

% positives

2010

mainly present

molecules

BEES

North Italy 16 % (17/102) 10 % (11/111)Clothianidin, Coumaphos, Fluvalinate, Imidacloprid,Rotenone

Central Italy 15 % (16/104) 8 % (8/102)

South Italy 18 % (20/111) 6 % (8/139)

WAX

North Italy 41 % (43/106) 42 % (51/121)Acrinatrina, Chlorfenvinphos, Coumaphos, Fluvalinate

Central Italy 52 % (56/108) 41 % (43/106)

South Italy 39 % (40/102) 47 % (65/138)

POLLEN

North Italy 32 % (10/32) 27 % (19/70)Acrinatrina, Chlorfenvinphos, Coumaphos, Fluvalinate

Central Italy 28 % (30/106) 30 % (30/100)

South Italy 19 % (11/59) 24 % (31/129)

Protein content

Area % N (2009) % N (2010)

North Italy 1.82 – 3.86 0.68 – 4.17

Central Italy 2.13 – 4.73 2.12 – 5.31

South Italy 1.06 – 5.68 1.87 – 4.45

2011 2011/12 2012 2012/13

% c

olon

y lo

sses

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

N=839

N=660

N=2,501 N=2,501

18.3% (N=839) 12.8% (N=2,501)

Honey bee colony losses

Honey bee colony losses

� In northern Italy colony mortality amounted to 4% (1,227 monitored colonies) and Winter mortality to 8.5%;

� in central Italy colony mortality amounted to 12.9% (584 monitored colonies) and Winter mortality to 4.9%;

� in southern Italy colony mortality amounted to 7.6% (920 monitored colonies) and Winter mortality to 3%

Conclusioni� Unità di monitoraggio caratterizzate da diverso paesaggio ed

utilizzo del territorio� Cereali in Emilia Romagna, mentre in Sicilia e Puglia agrumi e

olivo, rispettivamente� Confermato il carattere enzootico di N. ceranae in Italia, bassa

concentrazione di spore (nel 2012, solo il 3,4% dei campioni con più di 10 milioni di spore di N. Ceranae per ape)

� Indagine sistematica di alcuni virus (DWV, ABPV, CBPV), loro quantificazione e distribuzione geografica

� Contributo alla conoscenza del valore nutrizionale del pane d’api

Conclusioni� Indagine sistematica sulla presenza di residui nel pane d’api

(pesticidi, acaricidi eneonicotinoidi)� Contributo alla conoscenza delle perdite di colonie� Mortalità media annua e invernale più bassa rispetto a quanto

rilevato in passato – monitoraggio Coloss e Apenet (19-37%)� I risultati disponibili sono indicativi di un buono stato sanitario

degli alveari� Database dell’apicoltura in Italia� Servizio SPIA (progetto Apenet – 2009/10): interventi di campo,

raccolta dati e campioni, indagine epidemiologica negli episodi di mortalità in collaborazioneanche con le autorità sanitarie

Coloss questionnaire - 2012/13

Veneto

� 54 apicoltori

� 1033 alveari: 907 sopravvissuti, 126 persi

� Perdite invernali = 12%

Progetto EU per il monitoraggio della mortalità delle colonie di api

Italia (dati non definitivi)

� 194 apiari (circa 2400 alveari)

� Perdite invernali = <10%

� Perdite stagionali (primavera-estate) = <5%

Peste americana (focolai dichiarati)

• 1996: 342 focolai• 1997: 67• 1998: 262• 1999: 173• 2000: 224• 2001: 211• 2002: 63• 2003: 48• 2004: 109• 2005 and 2007: no informazioni• 2006: presente, no dati quantitativi• 2008: 55• 2009: 12• 2010: 6• 2011: no casi• 2012: presente

(Fonte: www.oie.int)

Peste europea (focolai dichiarati)

• 1996: 1 focolaio• 1997: 0• 1998: 1• 1999: • 2000: 2• 2001: 0• 2002: 0• 2003: 1• 2004: 0• 2005: 0• 2006: 1 (Lombardia)• 2007: 0• 2008: 2 (Sardegna, Toscana)• 2009: 1 (Lombardia)• 2010: 0 (present)• 2011: 1 (Lazio)• 2012: (6/2011) (Fonte: www.oie.int)

Altre malattie/parassiti non presenti

Acariosi (Acarapis woodi) (Ultima segnalazione: 1994)

Malattie esotiche:

Piccolo coleottero dell’alveare (Aethina tumida)

Tropilaelaps spp.

(Fonte: www.oie.int)