Taiwan stingless bee field investigation and greenhouse pollination preliminary work

Overview

An endemic species of stingless bee, Lepidotrigona hoozana, was traditionally used in Taiwan based on aboriginal practices as main pollen insects and for the production of propolis. The main nesting plants include native tree species such as Roche’s salt wood, mulberry tree, and Elephant’s Ear trees. However, due to habitat degradation and deforestation for betel nut and tea production, as well as the use of agrochemicals, including pesticides and herbicides, the stingless bee populations are now close to extinction in their native habitat. Recently, in Taiwan only about 30 stingless bee nests were found in the wild. Stingless bees have considerable potential in bee pollination, and even medical and chemical use. In order to contribute to the recovery and conservation of pollinated bees, the project experimented rearing the stingless bees in tree barrel hives from the wild in the primary forest as a rich enough source to supply the feeding environment.

Key achievements

• The project succeeded in identifying pollen sources of stingless bees among the flora of Taiwan, and making bee food suitable for improving strength and reproduction of the bees. As the supply of pollen is insufficient and the stingless bees can be affected by diseases, the following substances can be used as alternative pollen food to improve bee health and bee colony breeding, and ultimately to increase the bee population: highly digestive soy, protein decomposition products, beer yeast powder, white granulated sugar, integrated vitamins, citric acid, Chinese herbal medicine extract powder, garlic powder and unsaturated fatty acids.
• Earlier problems of artificial breeding and reproduction were solved. The project demonstrated that stingless bees can live in rearing conditions and assist farmers in the pollination of greenhouse cultivation.
• The project also preliminarily completed the pre-pollination trial of greenhouse bitter gourd.
• These results have attracted attention of other relevant government units in Taiwan, including the Construction Department, Xueba National Park, and the Hualien Forest Management Office. They invited the project team to develop further plans. The project results have also been reported by the media, including online media, prompting public discussion of the stingless bee issue.

Lessons

• Abuse of agricultural chemicals (e.g. pesticides) may cause the stingless bee to become extinct rapidly. This species thus serves as an environmental indicator, which reminds residents of the importance of the habitat.
• Furthermore, the stingless bee is suitable for greenhouse pollination. However, without appropriate guidelines on stingless bee beekeeping, the stingless bee colonies may collapse.
• Both pollination and propolis product development are worthwhile and meaningful for environmental conservation and economic development. In the future, it is hoped that pollination tests can be carried out on various greenhouse melon plants in the region, in order to enhance the agricultural economic value.