Bird Tissues from Museum Collections Are Reliable for Assessing Avian Haemosporidian Diversity.

Birds harbor a diverse group of haemosporidian parasites that reproduce and develop in the host blood cells, muscle tissue, and various organs, which can cause negative effects on the survival and reproduction of their avian hosts. Characterization of the diversity, distribution, host specificity, prevalence patterns, and phylogenetic relationships of these parasites is critical to the study of avian host-parasite ecology and evolution and for understanding and preventing epidemics in wild bird populations. Here, we tested whether muscle and liver samples collected as part of standard ornithological museum expeditions can be examined to study the diversity and distributions of haemosporidians in the same way as blood collected from individual birds that are typically banded and released. We used a standard molecular diagnostic screening method for mitochondrial DNA (cytochrome b) of the parasites and found that blood, muscle, and liver collected from the same host individual provide similar estimates of prevalence and diversity of haemosporidians from the genera Parahaemoproteus and Leucocytozoon. Although we found higher prevalence for the genus Plasmodium when we screened blood vs. liver and muscle samples, the estimates of the diversity of Plasmodium from different tissue types are not affected at the community level. Given these results, we conclude that for several reasons existing museum genetic resources collections are valuable data sources for the study of haemosporidians. First, ornithological museum collections around the world house tens of thousands of vouchered tissue samples collected from remote regions of the world. Second, the host specimens are vouchered and thus host identification and phenotype are permanently documented in databased archives with a diversity of associated ancillary data. Thus, not only can identifications be confirmed but also a diversity of morphological measurements and data can be measured and accessed for these host specimens in perpetuity.

Correction: Colony Failure Linked to Low Sperm Viability in Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Queens and an Exploration of Potential Causative Factors.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0147220.].

Linking Measures of Colony and Individual Honey Bee Health to Survival among Apiaries Exposed to Varying Agricultural Land Use.

We previously characterized and quantified the influence of land use on survival and productivity of colonies positioned in six apiaries and found that colonies in apiaries surrounded by more land in uncultivated forage experienced greater annual survival, and generally more honey production. Here, detailed metrics of honey bee health were assessed over three years in colonies positioned in the same six apiaries. The colonies were located in North Dakota during the summer months and were transported to California for almond pollination every winter. Our aim was to identify relationships among measures of colony and individual bee health that impacted and predicted overwintering survival of colonies. We tested the hypothesis that colonies in apiaries surrounded by more favorable land use conditions would experience improved health. We modeled colony and individual bee health indices at a critical time point (autumn, prior to overwintering) and related them to eventual spring survival for California almond pollination. Colony measures that predicted overwintering apiary survival included the amount of pollen collected, brood production, and Varroa destructor mite levels. At the individual bee level, expression of vitellogenin, defensin1, and lysozyme2 were important markers of overwinter survival. This study is a novel first step toward identifying pertinent physiological responses in honey bees that result from their positioning near varying landscape features in intensive agricultural environments.

Colony Failure Linked to Low Sperm Viability in Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Queens and an Exploration of Potential Causative Factors.

Queen health is closely linked to colony performance in honey bees as a single queen is normally responsible for all egg laying and brood production within the colony. In the U. S. in recent years, queens have been failing at a high rate; with 50% or greater of queens replaced in colonies within 6 months when historically a queen might live one to two years. This high rate of queen failure coincides with the high mortality rates of colonies in the US, some years with >50% of colonies dying. In the current study, surveys of sperm viability in US queens were made to determine if sperm viability plays a role in queen or colony failure. Wide variation was observed in sperm viability from four sets of queens removed from colonies that beekeepers rated as in good health (n = 12; average viability = 92%), were replacing as part of normal management (n = 28; 57%), or where rated as failing (n = 18 and 19; 54% and 55%). Two additional paired set of queens showed a statistically significant difference in viability between colonies rated by the beekeeper as failing or in good health from the same apiaries. Queens removed from colonies rated in good health averaged high viability (ca. 85%) while those rated as failing or in poor health had significantly lower viability (ca. 50%). Thus low sperm viability was indicative of, or linked to, colony performance. To explore the source of low sperm viability, six commercial queen breeders were surveyed and wide variation in viability (range 60-90%) was documented between breeders. This variability could originate from the drones the queens mate with or temperature extremes that queens are exposed to during shipment. The role of shipping temperature as a possible explanation for low sperm viability was explored. We documented that during shipment queens are exposed to temperature spikes (<8 and > 40°C) and these spikes can kill 50% or more of the sperm stored in queen spermathecae in live queens. Clearly low sperm viability is linked to colony performance and laboratory and field data provide evidence that temperature extremes are a potential causative factor.

Phylogenetic relationships of flowerpeckers (Aves: Dicaeidae): novel insights into the evolution of a tropical passerine clade.

Understanding the relationships and evolution of flowerpeckers has been challenging, particularly as no phylogenetic study has as yet assessed the group. Here, we present a first such analysis of this clade based on sequences of two mitochondrial genes and one nuclear intron. Our analyses offer strong support for monophyly of the Dicaeidae. Within the family, 4 Dicaeum species (D. chrysorrheum, D. melanoxanthum, D. agile, and D. everetii) had closer affinity to Prionochilus, although tests of alternative topologies could not reject reciprocal monophyly of the two genera. Across the family, overall bill shape trends from more stout bills basally to more slender and medium bills, whereas sexual dichromatism and plumage patterns show much more homoplasy. Taxonomically, generic allocations may need to be changed to reflect historical relationships better.

Honey bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) distribution and potential for supplementary pollination in commercial tomato greenhouses during winter.

This study examined the use of honey bees, Apis mellifera L., to supplement bumble bee, Bombus spp., pollination in commercial tomato, Lycopersicon esculentum Miller, greenhouses in Western Canada. Honey bee colonies were brought into greenhouses already containing bumble bees and left for 1 wk to acclimatize. The following week, counts of honey and bumble bees foraging and flying throughout the greenhouse were conducted three times per day, and tomato flowers open during honey bee pollination were marked for later fruit harvest. The same counts and flower-marking also were done before and after the presence of honey bees to determine the background level of bumble bee pollination. Overall, tomato size was not affected by the addition of honey bees, but in one greenhouse significantly larger tomatoes were produced with honey bees present compared with bumble bees alone. In that greenhouse, honey bee foraging was greater than in the other greenhouses. Honey bees generally foraged within 100 m of their colony in all greenhouses. Our study invites further research to examine the use of honey bees with reduced levels of bumble bees, or as sole pollinators of greenhouse tomatoes. We also make specific recommendations for how honey bees can best be managed in greenhouses.

Geographic variation in the rosy thrush-tanager (rhodinocichla rosea) complex of mesoamerica (aves: passeriformes)

Patterns of differentiation and geographic variation among populations of the Rhodinocichla complex are described. We document the existence of a heretofore unreported population in the vicinity of Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico. The species occurs in 4-6 allopatric populations, each of which has unique characters that make it diagnosable. We recommend that the complex be considered a single biological species, but at least five phylogenetic species.

Se describen los patrones de diferenciación y variación geográfica entre poblaciones del complejo de Rhodinocichla. Se documenta la existencia de una población antes no conocida en los alrededores de Acapulco, Guerrero, México. La especie se encuentra dividida en 4-6 poblaciones alopátricas, cada una de las cuales tiene caracteres únicos que permiten diagnosticar a la población. Se recomienda que el compejo sea considerado como una sola especie biológica o como por lo menos cinco especies filogenéticas.

Comparison of release mechanisms for botanical oils to control Varroa destructor (Acari: Varroidae) and Acarapis woodi (acari: Tarsonemidae) in colonies of honey bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae).

Two major parasitic pests threaten honey bee populations, the external mite Varroa destructor and the internal mite Acarapis woodi (Rennie). Varroa are beginning to develop resistance to the main chemical defense fluvalinate, and alternative control methods are being pursued. Previous studies have shown that botanical oils, especially thymol, can be effective. Six release devices for either thymol or a blend of botanical oils known as Magic 3 were tested in beehives. The release devices were as follows: (1) low density polyethylene (LDPE) sleeves filled with Magic 3, (2) Magic 3-infused florist blocks, (3) thymol infused florist blocks, (4) a canola oil and thymol mixture wick release, (5) a plastic strip coated with calcium carbonate and Magic 3, and (6) an untreated control. There were significant decreases in varroa levels with the use of Magic 3 sleeves, but brood levels also decreased. Tracheal mite levels significantly decreased with the Magic 3 sleeve treatment, the Magic 3 florist block treatment, and the thymol canola wick treatment. A second experiment showed that changing the location of Magic 3 sleeves in the colony did not detrimentally effect brood levels, but also did not effectively control varroa mites.