Avaliação de formulações alimentares no desenvolvimento de colônias de abelhas africanizadas (Apis mellifera Linnaeus, 1758) na savana amazônica de Roraima

Abstract

Africanized bees find in the flowers their main source of food; as a result, it has been shown a reduction in population under unfavourable environmental conditions and, consequently, a lower honey production during the early spring. In Roraima, the highest honey production rates occur after the rainy season, the reason for which is important the bees be given supplement during the rainy period. This research was carried out to analyze the development of Africanized honeybee A. mellifera colonies according to different kinds of food supplements offered in order to maintain and/or increase the apicultural production rates. The research was conducted from April 12th to August 5th, 2011, in the Experimental Apiary of Zootechny Department of Federal University. It has been used twenty Langstroth beehives, provided with energetic food and chosen at random to be given three different isoproteinaceous feed containing 23% of raw protein. The four treatments were: T1 = witness (without any proteinaceous supplement); T2 = corn flour + toasted soybean flour + rice flour (in equal parts); T3 = 30% of toasted soybean flour + 19% of soybean dry milk + 20% corn flour + 31% crystal sugar; T4 = 45% of soybean flour + 40% of peach palm fruit flour+ 15% of crystal sugar. The diets performances were determined by the consumption of the proteinaceous feed; the development of the colonies, in turn, as regards weight gain, brood area and food area, being analyzed separately the uncapped and capped worker and drone areas, as well as the food area (cm²). The food consumption and the weight gain were obtained by weighing; the honeycomb area was analyzed by taking digital photographs of it and processing the data using the software Adobe Photoshop CS2. It has been found significant differences for feed consumption and weight gain, showing the colonies of T4 the highest feed consumption, and the colonies of T1, which were only given energetic food, the highest weight gain; it has also been observed in the latter the biggest brood and food areas. It has occurred a negative correlation of temperature and humidity with the weight gain in one of the colonies of T2.