No abstract

Reproduction of Varroa jacobsoni Oudemans has been extensively studied in colonies of the mite's recently acquired host, Apis mellifera Linnaeus. However, data on reproduction in colonies of its original host, A. cerana Fabricius, are still fragmentary. In order to compare reproductive success in naturally infested brood cells of A. cerana and A. mellifera, freshly capped worker and drone cells (0-5 h after capping) were marked and opened 9 days later. When one or more foundress Varroa mites were found, the number and stage of the offspring were recorded. In colonies of A. cerana, V. jacobsoni reproduced almost exclusively in drone cells. Surprisingly, however, these drone cells proved to be better suited for reproduction than drone (and worker) cells of A. mellifera. Firstly, in drone cells of A. cerana, 97-100% of the mites produced daughters and 98-99% of these mites also produced a son. In drone and worker cells of A. mellifera only 70-80% produced daughters and only 74-86% of these mites produced a son. Secondly, if a mite produced daughters, she produced more daughters in drone cells of A. cerana than in drone cells of A. mellifera: 4.5-4.6 vs 2.9-3.7 daughters per mite, respectively. Finally, infestation by two foundress females negatively affected reproduction per mite in drone cells of A. mellifera, but not in drone cells of A. cerana. Thus, V. jacobsoni seems to be better adapted to A. cerana than to A. mellifera, although population growth of mites in A. mellifera colonies is higher due to the exploitation of worker cells besides drone cells.

Even though indigenous knowledge (IK) is considered as one of the most effective strategies in response to climate change issues, this form is not being sufficiently integrated into the climate change planning and policy at both local and national levels in Vietnam. This study investigates the role of the traditional agricultural practices of the Xo Dang ethnic minority groups in Central Vietnam and provides insights into the factors that influence farmers to adopt these practices in response to climate change. Primary data was obtained through three focus group discussions and 87 household surveys involving the Xo Dang people through face-to-face semi-structured interviews in the Tra Doc commune, Bac Tra My district, Quang Nam province, Central Vietnam. The binary logistic regression model was used to examine the factors which have influenced the choices made by this community in response to climate change. The results showed that Xo Dang people were highly aware of climate change risks and had, in response, employed their current adaptation practices. The major adaptation strategies implemented by the Xo Dang people included the use of flora and fauna indicators, native plant varieties, the adjustment of planting calendars, irrigation practices, and the application of intercropping. The results indicated that the living years, their monthly farm incomes, and farmer's perceptions of ongoing climate change effects on their environment were the factors that significantly affected farmers' adaptation decisions. Understanding indigenous knowledge plays a fundamental role in the processes of deciding the appropriate adaptation techniques more effectively and making use of human resources. Therefore, policy makers should pay much attention to indigenous knowledge to combat climate change in future national policies and projects.

Free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) is a means of ensuring that people's rights are respected when reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, and enhancing forest carbon stocks (REDD+) projects are established in developing countries. This paper examines how FPIC has been applied in three projects in Vietnam and highlights two key lessons learnt. First, as human rights and democracy are seen as politically sensitive issues in Vietnam, FPIC is likely to be more accepted by the government if it is built upon the national legal framework on citizen rights. Applying FPIC in this context can ensure that both government and citizen's interests are achieved within the permitted political space. Second, FPIC activities should be seen as a learning process and designed based on local needs and preferences, with accountability of facilitators, two-way and multiple communication strategies, flexibility, and collective action in mind.

-This observation is aimed at providing information for a reasonable comparative study on reproductive biology among the honeybee species. The research was carried out in 1996 in the submerged Melaleuca forest of southern Vietnam, where low-nesting colonies on man-made supports, rafters, allowed us to make detailed observations on the queens. Flights of six newly emerged queens were observed and after their final mating flights, queens were dissected to count the sperm number. The five investigated queens took their first flights 6 ± 1 (mean ± SD) days after emergence. Four queens took orientation flights of less than 3 min. One queen flew to mate without any orientation flight. Mating flights happened around sunset and lasted 15.4 ± 4.3 (n = 14) min. A queen undertook two to four mating flights and after fully mating, she had 5.5 ± 0.9 (n = 5) million sperm in her spermatheca. This study indicated the extreme polyandry in A. dorsata. © Inra/DIB/AGIB/Elsevier, Paris Apis dorsata / queen flight / Vietnam / sperm number