RESUMO
In recent decades, there has been an increasing focus on the alarming decline in global bee populations, given their critical ecological contributions to natural pollination and biodiversity. This decline, marked by a substantial reduction in bee colonies in forested areas, has serious implications for sustainable beekeeping practices and poses a broader risk to ecological well-being. Addressing these pressing issues requires innovative solutions, one of which involves the development and fabrication of beehives crafted from composite materials that are ecologically compatible with bee biology. Importantly, these materials should also exhibit a high resistance to environmental factors, such as ultraviolet (UV) radiation, in order to maintain their mechanical integrity and longevity. To investigate this, we conducted accelerated UV degradation tests on a variety of composite materials to rapidly assess their susceptibility to UV-induced changes. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) served as the matrix material and was reinforced with natural fibers, specifically fique fibers (Furcraea bedinghausii), banana fibers, and goose feathers. Our findings indicate that UV radiation exposure results in a noticeable reduction in the tensile strength of these materials. For example, wood composites experienced a 48% decline in tensile strength over a 60-day period, a rate of deterioration notably higher than that of other tested composite materials. Conversely, HDPE composites fortified with banana fibers initially demonstrated tensile strengths exceeding 9 MPa and 10 MPa. Although these values gradually decreased over the observation period, the composites still displayed favorable stress-strain characteristics. This research underscores the substantial influence of UV radiation on the longevity and efficacy of beehive materials, which in turn affects the durability of natural wood hives exposed to these environmental factors. The resultant increased maintenance and replacement costs for beekeepers further emphasize the need for judicious material selection in beehive construction and point to the viability of the composite materials examined in this study.
RESUMO
Meliponiculture is the name for stingless beekeeping in Brazil. Stingless bees have different nest behaviors showing external and internal nests (natural cavities or not). One of the main problems of meliponiculture is the capture of a colony in order to begin a meliponary without destroying trees or the colonies during the capture. A new alternative method for the capture of stingless bee colonies is presented for the genus Melipona Illiger, 1806, which are the species mostly used for producing honey and pollen. The method is to open the tree, collect the colony, and then close the tree with natural resins known as "breu".
No Brasil a criação racional de abelhas sem ferrão é denominada meliponicultura. As abelhas sem ferrão possuem diferentes comportamentos de nidificação, com ninhos internos (cavidades naturais ou não) e externos. Um dos principais problemas apresentados na meliponicultura é a captura de uma colônia com o objetivo de iniciar um meliponário sem "destruir as árvores" ou mesmo as próprias colônias durante a captura. O presente trabalho apresenta um método alternativo para captura de colônias de abelhas sem ferrão, especialmente, do gênero Melipona Illiger, 1806, que são as espécies mais utilizadas para produção de mel e pólen, na região Amazônica. O método consiste em abrir uma janela na árvore, coletar o material e fechar a abertura utilizando a resina vegetal conhecida como breu.
RESUMO
The experiment was realized in Padre Assis apiary, at Santiago county Brazil, from December 10, 1996 to January 10, 1997. Twenty Langstroth beehives with two separeted nests by an excluding screen of queen bees were used. The experimental unity was constituted of beehives in which treatments were applied randomly. The effects of treatments were evaluated through the beehives performance of production of royal jelly and the data were submitted to the analysis of variance and the test of Tukey. The relation between feed consumption and royal jelly production, resulted in the treatment-1, average production of 7.9g of royal jelly/beehive of each harvest, in treatment-2 the production was of 4.32g. These results evidenced that the use of apiaries of the central region of Rio Grande do Sul, for royal jelly production in December and January is practicable. This results were achieved with the utilization of supplemental feeding constituted of three parts of sugar and one of milky meal.
O experimento foi realizado no apiário Padre Assis, no Município de Santiago, RS, no período entre 10 de dezembro de 1996 a 10 de janeiro de 1997. Foram utilizadas vinte colméias Langstroth, cada uma com dois ninhos separados por tela excluidora de rainhas. As unidades experimentais foram colméias sobre as quais os tratamentos alimentares foram aplicados em um delineamento inteiramente casualizado. Os efeitos dos tratamentos foram avaliados pelo desempenho das colméias na produção de geléia real e os dados submetidos à análise de variância e ao teste Tukey. A relação entre o consumo do alimento e a produção de geléia real, resultou no Tratamento-1 com uma produção média de 7,9 gramas de geléia real por colméia em cada coleta; no Tratamento-2, a produção ficou em 4,32 gramas por coleta. Os resultados obtidos evidenciaram que o aproveitamento dos apiários na região central do Rio Grande do Sul, para a produção de geléia real nos meses de dezembro e janeiro, é economicamente viável, utilizando-se alimentação suplementar constituída de três partes de açúcar e uma de farinha láctea.
RESUMO
The experiment was realized in Padre Assis apiary, at Santiago county Brazil, from December 10, 1996 to January 10, 1997. Twenty Langstroth beehives with two separeted nests by an excluding screen of queen bees were used. The experimental unity was constituted of beehives in which treatments were applied randomly. The effects of treatments were evaluated through the beehives performance of production of royal jelly and the data were submitted to the analysis of variance and the test of Tukey. The relation between feed consumption and royal jelly production, resulted in the treatment-1, average production of 7.9g of royal jelly/beehive of each harvest, in treatment-2 the production was of 4.32g. These results evidenced that the use of apiaries of the central region of Rio Grande do Sul, for royal jelly production in December and January is practicable. This results were achieved with the utilization of supplemental feeding constituted of three parts of sugar and one of milky meal.
O experimento foi realizado no apiário Padre Assis, no Município de Santiago, RS, no período entre 10 de dezembro de 1996 a 10 de janeiro de 1997. Foram utilizadas vinte colméias Langstroth, cada uma com dois ninhos separados por tela excluidora de rainhas. As unidades experimentais foram colméias sobre as quais os tratamentos alimentares foram aplicados em um delineamento inteiramente casualizado. Os efeitos dos tratamentos foram avaliados pelo desempenho das colméias na produção de geléia real e os dados submetidos à análise de variância e ao teste Tukey. A relação entre o consumo do alimento e a produção de geléia real, resultou no Tratamento-1 com uma produção média de 7,9 gramas de geléia real por colméia em cada coleta; no Tratamento-2, a produção ficou em 4,32 gramas por coleta. Os resultados obtidos evidenciaram que o aproveitamento dos apiários na região central do Rio Grande do Sul, para a produção de geléia real nos meses de dezembro e janeiro, é economicamente viável, utilizando-se alimentação suplementar constituída de três partes de açúcar e uma de farinha láctea.