Using smart beehives to monitor the health of honeybee colonies pollinating agricultural crops

Author of the article:LIU Lu-Feng, WANG Ying, WANG Hong-Fang, LU Yun-Tao, LIU Zhen-Guo, XU Bao-Hua

Author's Workplace：College of Animal Science and Technology, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai’an 271018, China

Key Words：facility agriculture; smart beehive; pollination; bee colony; colony health status

Abstract：[Objectives]  To investigate the health of honeybees in a strawberry greenhouse. [Methods]  Italian honeybees Apis mellifera ligustica were the study species. We used smart beehives situated in a strawberry greenhouse as a monitoring tool to obtain data on the number of bees entering and leaving the hive, the temperature and humidity of the hive, the honeycomb weight, the volume of sound produced by colonies and colony potential. All data were normalized before analysis. [Results]  The weight of bee colonies decreased significantly by > 50% over the course of the study. The average daily temperature of hives was between 10 and 20 °C in all three greenhouses. There was, however, a large temperature difference between day and night, and humidity varied considerably between greenhouses. The temperature and humidity recorded in hives were not ideal for colony health and survival. The trend in the number of bees entering and leaving hives was similar, but the range was different. In one greenhouse 2.67-2.83 times more bees entered and left hives than in the other greenhouses. The change in the volume of sound produced by colonies was similar; volume gradually increased over the duration of the experiment. [Conclusion]  The greenhouse environment is not an ideal environment for honey bees, and the off-season fruit and vegetable cultivation environment in greenhouses has adverse effects on the health of honeybee colonies. These findings lay a foundation for improving the health of honeybees used for pollination purposes in greenhouses.