New Honey bee Threat: Parasitic Fly

                Some scientists discovered that a fly, a parasitic phorid fly, Apocephalus borealis , native to North America could have another negative effect on our European honey bees. Since the syndrome called Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), much has been studied around the world but without pin pointing the real cause of the hive abandonment, and the unexplained losses of honey bee colonies at an alarming number.
It has been somewhat "agreed" in the bee world community that the main cause of this important loss is the combination of many factors acting together and weakening the honey bees. Those important pollinators are plagued by viruses, bacteria, fungus and mites added to their misery is "that" fly. I find it very peculiar that an American born fly is now parasitizing a non-native bee! "By 1621, the Virginia Company was sending ships loaded with "divers sort of seed, and fruit trees , as also Pidgeons, connies (rabbits), Peacock maistives, and Beehives," according to an invoice sent from the Council of the Virginia Company in London to the governor and Council of Virginia." Obviously there are lots of bees in America, called native bees but no honey bees as we know them. The Phorid fly A. boralis has always been here and was known to parasitize bumble bees, yellow jackets,  paper wasps and black widow spiders. 
             Scientists think that this host shift to honey bees is fairly recent. However little is known of its possible expansion, it will need to be assessed. It is important to understand if this fly has switched from bumblebees other  (which have a smaller colony, live only one season and  only the queens overwinter) to honey bees (which are much larger in population, and stay warm during the winter). What would happen if a fly can get into a warm hive at the end of fall ? Stop reading...not for the "feeble" hearts!
          This how A. boralis survive and reproduce using a honeybee has a host in nature. The female fly finds a worker honey bee and deposits her egg into the bee's the abdomen. Later, 5 to 7 days, a fly larvae exits the honey bee between the head and the thorax. In the scientific paper " A New Threat to Honey Bees, the Parasitic Phorid Fly Apocephalus borealis written by 10 researchers, their data suggest that"phorid-parasitized bees demonstrate the unusual behavior of abandoning their hives at night." However it is also known that a sick honey bee will leave the nest, sacrificing herself  and dying ; leaving behind the healthy colony to thrive.
     I talked to a couple of entomologists at the University of Minnesota regarding this new buzz , even if it seems alarming and looks scary, it is not well understood yet and very localized using a small sample, much more research has to be done". 
Conclusion: Take care of your bees, be aware and stay informed. But do not panic! I feel much better now:)
     

Image from PLoS One showing: A. an adult female A. borealis, B. A female fly depositing an egg into the abdomen of a worker honey bee. C. Two fly larvae exiting a honey bee worker where the bee's head meets the thorax. (shown by red arrows.) (Photo courtesy PLos One


References:
Bees in America: How the Honey Bee Shaped a Nation by Tammy Horn


Core, Runckel, Ivers, Quock, Siapno, DeNault, Brown, Derisi, Smith & Hafernik. 2011. A New Threat to Honey Bees, the Parasitic Phorid Fly Apocephalus borealis. PLoS ONE Citation TBC