Fast Africanized Bee Identification System (FABIS) test

[genesbees]

According to California:

How do the experts tell AHB from other bees?
At the local level, a Fast Africanized Bee Identification System (FABIS) test can be performed. Starting with a sample of 50 to 100 bees, 10 bees are randomly sorted. The right wing is removed from each and mounted on microscope slides, and the average wing length is calculated. If the average wing length is over 9mm, the bees are European Honey Bees. If the average wing length is under 9mm, the bees are suspect Africanized Honey Bees..........

Does anyone know if there has been any study to determine if this type of test (FABIS) is valid for European Honey Bees that have been regressed to small cell comb?  It would seem to me that smaller cells = smaller bees = shorter wings.

[Understudy]

The testing is known as morphometrics. The state of Florida has been using it for a while. They use it a stage 1 test. Bees that fail that are suppose to be sent for DNA testing. But usually by the time the morphometrics results are in you hive is doomed if it fails. The DNA results could come back negative but by then at best you have already had to requeen at worst the hive has been destroyed.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

[sean]

Is the concern regarding AHBs as great in Africa and South & central america?

[Understudy]

Is the concern regarding AHBs as great in Africa and South & central america?

Africa has them and is very use to dealing with them. They don't whine like the american media does. The AHBs is South and Central America are now the standard. The bees have been a real benefit to the beekeepers who pollinate coffee crops. Beekeepers in S America go into hives in shorts and a tank top, Beekeepers in Africa(tribal area) in certain cases do it naked. American beekeepers deal with pacified european bees by wearing the modern day equivelent to a knights armor.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

[sean]

knowing our jamaican culture i am kind of surprised that its not here as yet. 

[Understudy]

I offered to send Micheal Bush some he declined. I can send you some also.  :evil:

Sincerely,
Brendhan

[sean]

Aah thinking thinking thinking... :-\

[Michael Bush]

>It would seem to me that smaller cells = smaller bees = shorter wings.

Exactly.

[genesbees]

The testing is known as morphometrics. The state of Florida has been using it for a while. They use it a stage 1 test. Bees that fail that are suppose to be sent for DNA testing. But usually by the time the morphometrics results are in you hive is doomed if it fails. The DNA results could come back negative but by then at best you have already had to requeen at worst the hive has been destroyed.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

From what I have read, FABIS and morphometrics are two different things.  FABIS simply uses average wing length (<9mm = suspected AHB).  Morphometrics involve wing vein pattern analysis and leg segment length analysis.  In Texas if FABIS identifies a sample as suspect AHB, then it goes on to a morphometric analysis for final verification but I think only if the bees were involved in a stinging event.  My contention is that FABIS may incorrectly identify Small Cell EHB as suspect AHB and force you to unnecessarily re-queen a good hive.  So I was trying to find out if any study had been done regarding the average wing length of small cell EHB's.

[Understudy]

Sent: Monday, August 13, 2007 7:43 PM
To: Ellis,James
Subject: Morphometrics

Hi Jamie,

Is Morphometrics the same thing as the Fast Africanized Bee
Identification System (FABIS) test?

Sincerely,
Brendhan


Hey Brendhan,

Yes and no.

FABIS is 1 morphometrics measurement on one wing of a bee. It is
designed to point you in the right direct. A more satisfying (more
complete) morphometrics analysis occurs with USDA-ID. Here, they measure
somewhere around 10-20 characters (I forget the number) to predict what
the bees.

Just in case I am wrong (and I have been many times before), I've
attached David Barnes to this email for his input. David is the guys who
works for the state actually doing these measurements. He knows
everything about it and is a great resource in this regard.

Hope this helps. Let me know if I can do more.

Jamie


Jamie Ellis, PhD
Assistant Professor of Entomology
Honey Bee Research and Extension Laboratory
Department of Entomology and Nematology
University of Florida
Bldg 970 Natural Area Drive
PO Box 110620
Gainesville, FL 32611-0620

[Romahawk]

According to this article it looks like we all have bees with African genes.  :shock:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15420492/

[randydrivesabus]

i want to hear more about working bees with no armor. why are they able to and we are not? are they masochists?

[genesbees]

Ok, now I have read some stuff from Dee Lusby that seems to indicate there are a lot of potential problems with using morphometrics to identify honey bee races.  I have searched in vain all over the web for a list of morphometric characteristics for A. melifera scutellata (AHB).  Dave Cushman's site has a few characteristics for other races (cubital index, discoidal shift, fifth tergite overhair length, etc.) but none for scutellata.  I am beginning to think that no one wants any scrutiny of this method since I can't find the data for scutellata.  I have found references stating that 7 to 30 characteristics are being used to identify AHB, but no reference to the actual data.  Can anyone help?  Does anyone know of an entomology text that might have this information since it does not seem to be readily available on the web?

[Jerrymac]

I had thought about having some small cell beeks from up north where there are no AHBs send some of their regressed bees down to someone in one of these AHB infested states and let that person send the bees to the lab just to see how it turns out.

[Kirk-o]

I would hate to think that Africanize bees were being discriminated against.I'm sure all my bees are Africanized so what.If they are to mean I do a Michael Bush thing Divide and conquer works every time .Along with good beekeeping skills no problem.kirk-o
kirk-o

P.s I figure Michael Bish's page with all his poop of knowledge can fix just about everythin.In fact the people in Florida would be well served to read his whole site a few times

[pdmattox]

I would hate to think that Africanize bees were being discriminated against.I'm sure all my bees are Africanized so what.If they are to mean I do a Michael Bush thing Divide and conquer works every time .Along with good beekeeping skills no problem.kirk-o
kirk-o

P.s I figure Michael Bish's page with all his poop of knowledge can fix just about everythin.In fact the people in Florida would be well served to read his whole site a few times

Just a few questions, why would you continue managing a colony that is Africanized knowing that is what they are and the dangers that go with that?
  Second why do people in Florida(singled out) need to read MB's site over a few times and not everyone?  Michale Bush does have a very nice and educational site, one I do look at often. However I've never read where he discusses managing africanized bees. 

[mgmoore7]

I don't recall seeing anything about Africanized bees on MB's site either. 

IMHO, as a starting and small beek with 3 hives, I don't see why I would want anything to do with africanized bees.  I will requeen if I loose track of my marked queens.  I know someone that is within 15 miles of me that had africanized bees.  He requeened. 

[genesbees]

I would hate to think that Africanize bees were being discriminated against.I'm sure all my bees are Africanized so what......

I don't know about the laws in your state, but here in Texas it is not legal to knowingly keep Africanized bees in a managed colony.  You are required to either re-queen or destroy the hive.  I keep all my European bees on small cell, so I am concerned about them being mis-identified as AHB via Morphometrics and forcing me to re-queen unnecessarily.  If all identification were done via mtDNA to establish matrilines, then I would not worry, but I don't think this is the case.

On another note, if I can find valid Morphometric differences between AHB and small cell EHB, then it would be simple enough to periodically do my own Morphometric analysis to make sure that AHB are not creeping in.  But I need the data on A. melifera scutellata to accomplish that.

[mgmoore7]

genesbees
In FL, the primary way they recommend keeping africanized bees out of your colonies is by keeping marked queens that are known not to be africanized.  If not using marked queens, they FL wants you to requeen every 6 months.  If catching a feral colony they want you to requeen immediately.  As long as you can find your marked queen then all is good.

That is the plan now and it is a voluntary africanized management program at this point.  I would not be surprised if it eventually became mandatory. 

[genesbees]

genesbees
In FL, the primary way they recommend keeping africanized bees out of your colonies is by keeping marked queens that are known not to be africanized.  If not using marked queens, they FL wants you to requeen every 6 months.  If catching a feral colony they want you to requeen immediately.  As long as you can find your marked queen then all is good.

That is the plan now and it is a voluntary africanized management program at this point.  I would not be surprised if it eventually became mandatory. 

I know a lot of beekeepers (myself included) that would find that type of "management program" unmanageable.  Its not feasible to dig through a large number of hives in several outyards on a regular basis to be sure you have a marked queen.  Likewise, re-queening a large number of hives every 6 months would not be feasible.  So far the accepted management program in Texas has been drone saturation (keeping a frame or two of drone comb in several hives of known genetics at all times).  The hope is that because of sheer numbers, the EHB drones will out compete the AHB drones.  I personally do not have a long enough track record with this method to be able to say how well it works.  If I can prove to myself that Morphometrics is a reliable way to distinguish between AHB and small cell EHB, then IMO a periodic sampling of workers & drones from selective hives would be a more productive way of identifying the candidates for re-queening.  It would also help me to identify in which outyards AHB are more problematic.

There are several recent Texas A& M studies that pretty much put to rest all doubt about AHB being pretty prevalent in my area (1.  Coulson, R.M.,2005. Feral honey bees in pine forest landscapes of east Texas, 2.  Baum, K.A., 2003. Feral Africanized honey bee ecology in a coastal prairie landscape.)  They used mtDNA analysis to identify matrilines so the results are pretty bullet proof.  The interesting thing in the studies is that it shows that the EHB is somewhat holding its own against the AHB in East Texas, they lost some pretty good ground in the 90's due to varoa, but do seem to be rebounding somewhat.  From the 2005 study, based on aerial pitfall traps, the feral population seems to have stabilized at roughly 43% AHB matrilines, 42% EHB matrilines with the remaining 15% being A. melifera lamarckii (the Egyptian Honey bee).  Swarm traps showed a much higher percentage of AHB, but this is probably due to their higher frequency of swarming so it would seem that the pitfall traps are more representative of the feral population at large.  I do hope that another study is done in a few more years so we can see whether the feral population percentages are still changing.  Anecdotally I can say that based on the feral cutouts I have done recently, that I have yet to run across anything that even remotely acts like it is Africanized.  That may be because they have all been from cavities that more resembled the preferred nesting sites of EHB.  Although I did remove one open air hive in a pear tree that was so gentle that we worked them in shorts and tee shirts and no one took a single sting (even when a clump of bees fell right on top of my head).