Islam Shams Ul, Liaquat Javeria, Aqueel Muhammad Anjum, Abbasi Asim, Arshad Muhammad, Rizwan Muhammad Shahid, Saqib Muhammad, Masood Nasir, Kavhiza Nyasha J, Zafar Saba, Avila-Quezada Graciela Dolores, Abd Allah Elsayed Fathi, Alharbi Dalal Saad, Hashem Abeer
Department of Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture and Environment, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur 63100, Pakistan.
Department of Entomology, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad 38040, Pakistan.
Insects. 2025 Sep 16;16(9):967. doi: 10.3390/insects16090967.
Dearth periods associated with less floral resources negatively impact colony performance. Artificial diets offer nutritional supplements to sustain bee colonies under stressful conditions. An eight-week feeding trial was conducted using various artificial diets (eight diets, including a control diet), formulated with varying quantities of pulses, yeast, fenugreek powder, vegetable oil, dry apricot powder, and powdered sugar. Colony performance of bees subjected to different artificial diets was evaluated based on diet consumption, brood area, adult bee population, worker bee longevity, honey production, and enzymatic activity. Diet-7, which uniquely combined lupin, mung bean, and chickpea flours, proved the most efficacious and was the most consumed diet (84.29 ± 1.61 g), while diet-1 showed the lowest consumption (35.30 ± 1.08 g). Maximum brood area was recorded in colonies which were offered diet-7 (1385.95 ± 14.91 cm), followed by diet-6, whereas the lowest was observed in the control (831.03 ± 18.95 cm). The adult bee population was highest in diet-7 (21,594.50 ± 94.55 bees/hive), while lowest in the control (diet-0) (12,625.43 ± 385.06 bees/hive). Worker bee longevity was greatest in diet-7 (49.40 ± 0.41 days) and lowest in the control group (37.01 ± 0.39 days). Honey production was also highest in diet-7 (8.86 ± 0.21 kg), while lowest in the control (2.79 ± 0.35 kg). The results further showed that the enzymatic activities of bees were significantly improved due to diet-7, with the highest values for amylase (48.62 ± 0.23 U/mg), lipase (16.85 ± 0.20 U/mg), proteinase (25.21 ± 0.18 U/mg), and α-glucosidase (39.21 ± 0.21 U/mg). In conclusion, statistical analyses confirmed that diet-7 emerged as the most effective artificial diet, enhancing colony performance across all evaluated parameters. Future research should aim to optimize diet formulations and evaluate their effectiveness on colony health, including gut microbiome and immune function, across different seasons and ecological regions.
与较少花卉资源相关的食物匮乏期会对蜂群表现产生负面影响。人工饲料可提供营养补充剂，以在压力条件下维持蜂群。进行了一项为期八周的饲喂试验，使用了各种人工饲料（八种饲料，包括一种对照饲料），这些饲料由不同数量的豆类、酵母、葫芦巴粉、植物油、干杏粉和糖粉配制而成。根据饲料消耗量、育虫面积、成年蜜蜂数量、工蜂寿命、蜂蜜产量和酶活性，评估了接受不同人工饲料的蜜蜂的蜂群表现。饲料7独特地将羽扇豆、绿豆和鹰嘴豆粉混合在一起，被证明是最有效的，也是消耗量最大的饲料（84.29±1.61克），而饲料1的消耗量最低（35.30±1.08克）。提供饲料7的蜂群记录到最大育虫面积（1385.95±14.91平方厘米），其次是饲料6，而对照蜂群的育虫面积最低（831.03±18.95平方厘米）。饲料7组的成年蜜蜂数量最多（21,594.50±94.55只/蜂巢），而对照组（饲料0）的数量最少（12,625.43±385.06只/蜂巢）。饲料7组的工蜂寿命最长（49.40±0.41天），对照组最短（37.01±0.39天）。饲料7组的蜂蜜产量也最高（8.86±0.21千克），而对照组最低（2.79±0.35千克）。结果还表明，由于饲料7，蜜蜂的酶活性显著提高，淀粉酶（48.62±0.23 U/毫克）、脂肪酶（16.85±0.20 U/毫克）、蛋白酶（25.21±0.18 U/毫克）和α-葡萄糖苷酶（39.21±0.21 U/毫克）的值最高。总之，统计分析证实饲料7是最有效的人工饲料，在所有评估参数上都提高了蜂群表现。未来的研究应旨在优化饲料配方，并评估其在不同季节和生态区域对蜂群健康（包括肠道微生物群和免疫功能）的有效性。
