1 Seasonal Variations of Pests and Parasites Associated with Honeybees

Abstract: This study examines the seasonal variations of pests and parasites of Apis mellifera adansonii in south western Nigeria. This involved quantitative data collection on the pests and parasites from a total of nineteen selected bee farms at different locations within the states of south-western Nigeria. The selection of the bee farms in the states were based on the four main ecological zones (Lowland Rain Forest, Guinea savannah, Derived savannah and Mangrove forest). Twenty three animal species representing sixteen families, twelve orders, five classes and three phyla were encountered. All the species encountered were found in dry season and not all in wet season. Mites were lacking in both seasons in all the study sites. Most of the pests/parasites belongs to the class Hexapoda (lnsecta) followed by Mammalia, Reptilia, Arachnida and Gastropoda, respectively. At the ecological level the total number of frequency of occurrence of pests and parasites were 528 in Derived savannah, 489 in Lowland rain forest, 274 in Guinea savannah and 130 in Mangrove forest. There were more species of pests and parasites encountered in dry season than the wet season and no record of presence of mites in both seasons. Key words: Seasonal variation Pests Parasites Honeybees Southwestern Nigeria INTRODUCTION good and bad year with relationships between sunshine Honeybees plays vital role in the environment by noted that years with yield above 751b per colony in tha