The honey bee is a widely managed crop pollinator that provides the agricultural industry with the sustainability and economic viability needed to satisfy the food and fiber needs of our society. Excessive use of agrochemicals such as the acaricides coumaphos and tau-fluvalinate, and the fungicide, chlorothalonil is implicated in the reduced number of managed bee colonies available for crop pollination services. Here, I report the effects of pesticide exposures on the nutritional and immune health of the honey bee. Total protein concentration was significantly reduced in the coumaphos- and chlorothalonil-treated individuals compared to the pesticide-untreated bees. Total carbohydrate concentration was significantly reduced in the tau-fluvalinate-, coumaphos-, and chlorothalonil-treated individuals compared to the pesticide-untreated bees. Total lipid concentration was significantly decreased in the chlorothalonil-treated individuals compared to the pesticide-untreated bees. Body weight was significantly reduced for the tau-fluvalinate-, coumaphos-, and chlorothalonil-treated individuals, respectively, compared to the pesticide-untreated bees. Head width was significantly reduced for the chlorothalonil-treated individuals whereas the wing length was significantly reduced for the coumaphos and chlorothalonil-treated individuals, respectively, compared to the pesticide-untreated bees. Phenoloxidase activity was significantly increased in the coumaphos-treated individuals compared to the pesticide-untreated bees. Glucose oxidase activity was significantly increased in the chlorothalonil-treated individuals compared to the pesticide-untreated bees. While more research is needed to verify the observed effects of the pesticides on the nutritional and immunity health of the honey bee, it is important for beekeepers to consider alternative methods for control of varroa mites and the use of fungicides near their colonies. / Master of Science in Life Sciences
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/54013 |
| Date | 10 January 2014 |
| Creators | Reeves, Alison M. |
| Contributors | Entomology, Anderson, Troy D., Brewster, Carlyle C., Fell, Richard D. |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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