Varroa destructor mite in africanized honeybee colonies Apis mellifera l. under royal jelly or honey production/Varroa destructor em colonias de abelhas africanizadas Apis mellifera submetidas a producao de geleia real ou mel

This study evaluated the level of invasion of Varroa mite into worker brood cells, the infestation rate on adult worker honeybees, total and effective reproduction rates of the mite in Africanized honeybee colonies under royal jelly or honey production. Invasion and infestation rates were not statistically different between honeybee colonies producing honey or royal jelly and the averages for these parameters were 5.79 and 8.54%, respectively. Colonies producing honey presented a higher (p < 0.05) total and effective reproduction of Varroa than colonies producing royal jelly. There was a negative correlation between levels of invasion and infestation with minimum external temperature, relative humidity and rainfall. The variables month and season influenced the development of the mite, but rates were low and within the range normally found in Brazil for Africanized honeybee colonies, which confirm the greater resistance of these honeybees to Varroa destructor than European honeybees. Keywords: Varroa infestation, mite invasion rate in brood cells, mite total reproduction, mite effective reproduction, varroasis, honeybee queen selection. O objetivo foi analisar o nivel de invasao do acaro nas pupas, a taxa de infestacao do acaro nas abelhas adultas, as taxas de reproducao total e efetiva do acaro em colonias de abelhas africanizadas e se esses niveis sao influenciados pela producao de geleia real ou mel. As taxas de invasao nas pupas e infestacao nas abelhas adultas nao apresentaram diferenca estatistica entre os tratamentos, as medias para esses parametros foram 5,79 e 8,54%, respectivamente. As colonias submetidas a producao de mel apresentaram maior nivel de reproducao total e efetiva (p < 0,05) do acaro em relacao as colonias produtoras de geleia real. Houve correlacao negativa dos niveis de invasao nas pupas e infestacao nas abelhas adultas com a temperatura externa minima, umidade relativa do ar e precipitacao. As variaveis mes e o periodo do ano influenciaram o desenvolvimento do parasita, entretanto, as taxas obtidas foram baixas e dentro dos valores normalmente encontrados no Brasil para abelhas africanizadas. Palavras-chave: infestacao de varroa, invasao do acaro nas crias, reproducao total do acaro, reproducao efetiva do acaro, varroatose, selecao de rainhas.