Abstract
The susceptibility of worker honey bees,Apis mellifera L., as a function of age, to infestation by tracheal mites,Acarapis woodi Rennie, was investigated. Bees <24 h old were infested most frequently, and the frequency of infestation declined precipitously thereafter. Bees >4 days old were rarely infested in colonies during active brood rearing. Only 2 of 255 bees >8 days old, and 1 of 246 bees >16 days old, became infested. Most of the eggs found in bees>3 weeks old apparently were produced by the progeny of the original infestation.
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Gary, N.E., Page, R.E. & Lorenzen, K. Effect of age of worker honey bees (Apis mellifera) on tracheal mite (Acarapis woodi) infestation. Exp Appl Acarol 7, 153–160 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01270435
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01270435