Application of continuous monitoring of honeybee colonies

Abstract

-Monitoring physical variables associated with honeybee colonies, including weight, temperature, humidity, respiratory gases, vibration, sound, and forager traffic, in a continuous manner is becoming feasible for most researchers as the cost and size of electronic sensors decrease while their precision and capacity increase. Researchers have taken different approaches to collecting and analyzing the resulting datasets, with a view toward extracting information on colony behavior and phenology. The objective of this review is to examine critically the different kinds of data and data analyses, providing researchers with better-informed options for obtaining information on colony phenology in the field without disturbing the hive, and for combining information from different kinds of sensors to obtain a more complete picture of colony status. Wireless sensor networks and powering sensors are briefly discussed.continuous hive weight / colony temperature / colony humidity / forager traffic / hive vibration

Predictive modelling of honey bee foraging activity using local weather conditions

“…Continuous monitoring of honey bee hives has been the subject of considerable attention from beekeepers, apidologists and researchers for over a century (Meikle and Holst 2015). Many different metabolic and environmental parameters have been considered to characterise the state and health of honey bee colonies.…”

Internal hive temperature as a means of monitoring honey bee colony health in a migratory beekeeping operation before and during winter

“…and quality of stored food, while the principle interaction with the environment is in temperature management. Homeostasis and colony changes during winter have been studied using calorimeters and in-hive temperature arrays (Kronenberg and Heller 1982;Meikle and Holst 2015;Schmolz et al 1995). Survivorship and development of brood, particularly pre-pupae and pupae, depends on a continuous temperature of about 34-36°C (Jones et al 2004;Stabentheiner et al 2010;Wang et al 2016).…”

Monitoring colony phenology using within-day variability in continuous weight and temperature of honey bee hives

“…Data gathered from bee colonies on a continuous basis, in this case defined as hourly or more often for periods exceeding 2 days, are rich in information about bee colony growth and activity (Buchmann and Thoenes 1990;Meikle and Holst 2014). For example, foraging activity, as shown by weight changes due to forager traffic, and foraging success, as shown by increases in hive food stores, can be measured, provided the scales are of sufficient precision (Meikle et al 2008).…”