GRADUATE UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
-----------------------------
NGUYEN PHUONG MINH
STUDYING ON THE COMPONENT OF HONEY BEE SPECIES
(HYMENOPTERA: APIDAE) AND THE ABILITY TO USE SOME SPECIES
AS AN INDICATOR ESTIMATING ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION ON
AFFECTED ECOSYSTEMS IN THE NORTH OF VIETNAM
SUMMARY OF BIOLOGICAL DOCTORAL THESIS
Major subject:
Entomology
Code
62 42 01 06
HA NOI – 2017
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND
TRAINING
VIETNAM ACADEMY OF SCIENCE
AND TECHNOLOGY
The name of postgraduate training institution: Graduate University of science and
technology, Vietnam Academy of science and Technology.
Academic supervisors
1. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Truong Xuan Lam
2. Dr. Nguyen Thi Phuong Lien
Reviewer 1: …
Reviewer 2: …
Reviewer 3: ….
The thesis will be defended in front of the Thesis Committee at Academy level,
at Graduate University of Science and Technology, Vietnam Academy of
Science and Technology
at … hour ..., date … month … year 201
The thesis can be found in:
- Library of Graduate University of Science and Technology
- National Library
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INTRODUCTION
1. The imperation of the thesis
Honey bee family (Apidae) is the largest and the most diverse anout species
component in Apoidea with more than 5700 described species, in which some of
them had been bred for honey production. Every year, Vietnam produces nearly
20,000 tons of honey and 80-85% of total honey production is exported.
Many species of honey bee (Apidae) are important pollinators for major food
crops and industrial crops on the world. However, populations of indigenous honey
bee species may also be shrinked. The causes may be due to the shortage of their
foods and the effects of pesticides. In addition, residues of pesticides remaining in
agricultural products influence over not only human beings and domestic animals but
also many species of honey bee.
Some studies have shown that composition of heavy metal and metalloids which
are cumulated inside bodies of honey bee species (due to the consumption of food
from the polluted environment) could be analyzed to estimate environmental
pollution on the habitats where they get pollen and nectar of cultured plants.
For the above reasons, we have carried out the project “Studying on the component
of honey bee species (Hymenoptera: Apidae) and the ability to use some species as
an indicator estimating environmental pollution on affected ecosystems in the North
of Vietnam”.
2. Scientific and practical significances of the thesis
2.1. Scientific significances
The project has provided the data on species component, new recorded species,
common species and species with economic value in the study area.
Furthermore, the results of the thesis have also provided data on contents of
heavy metals and metalloids inside bodies, intestines, honey and beeswax of the
honey bee species (Apis cerana indiaca Fabricius), based on those it is pointed
out that this species can be used as a biological indicators to estimate
environmental pollution.
The thesis will also provide scientific basics for proposing directions and specific
solutions for the sustainable using, exploring and conserving of indigenous honey
bee species in the mountain area of the study region, serving the socio-economic
development of local people.
2.2. Practical significances
Providing new and update information about the component, diversity and
distribution of honey bee species belonging to the family Apidae in the habitats of
influenced ecosystems in the Northern part of Vietnam; contributing importantly into
studying on geobiology of honey bee species in the Southeast Asia in particular and on
the world in general.
Basing on the thesis data, it is allowed to choose Apis cerena Fabricius to be
biological indicator estimating heavy metal pollution in the environment of study area.
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3. Targets and contents of the thesis
3.1. The targets of the thesis
Studying species component, distribution of honey bee species belonging to the
family of Apidae, analyzing the ecological relations and determining for using some
honey bee species as an indicator of environmental pollution on the affected
ecosystems (farm ecosystems, perennial garden ecosystems, cultivated forest
ecosystems and evergreen forest ecosystems) in some provinces in the Northern
Vietnam, contributing to the conservation of honey bee species and producing high-
quality honey products for the economic development of local people.
3.2. Research contents
1) Investigation of component and distribution of honey bee species of the
family Apidae in some provinces in Northern Vietnam.
2) Describing of morphological characteristics of the new recorded species for
the fauna of honey bee of Vietnam.
3) Studying on the possibility of using some honey bee species to estimate
environmental pollution in investigated sites.
4) Determining the ecological relationship of some Apidae honey bee species in
habitats of affected ecosystems and propose solutions to conserve, develop and
sustainable use of these honey bee species.
4. Objects and sphere of studying
4.1. Studying objects
Honey bee species (Hymenoptera: Apidae)
Focus on subspecies Apis cerena indica Fabricius
4.2. Studying sphere
Studying on the species component, species diversity and the distribution of
honey bee species belonging to the family Apidae in some northern provinces of
Vietnam. Describing morphological characteristics of new recorded honey bee
species. Studying on the possibility for using honey bee species as a biological
indicator to estimate environmental pollution and determining the ecological
relationship of some Apidae honey bee species and some habitats in order to
conserve, develop and use sustainably these species of honey bee.
5. New scientific contributions of the thesis
+ For the first time, the list of species component and the distribution of honey
bee species belonging to the family of Apidae (Hymenoptera) in the Northern
Vietnam has been systematized.
+ 10 species are new recorded for the fauna of Vietnam honey bees and 17 new
species for the fauna of Northern Vietnam honey bees.
+ For the first time, data on the content of 10 heavy metals and metalloids
inside bodies, intestines, honey and beeswax of the domestic honey bee species
(Apis cerena indica Fabr.) have been provided and suggestion to choose this species
as a biological indicator to estimate heavy metal pollution in environment of some
northern provinces of Vietnam.
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6. The structure of the thesis
The thesis includes 146 pages in A4 form with: Introduction (8 pages); Chapter 1
– Scientific basics and overviews (31 pages); Chapter 2 – Materials and methods (13
pages); Chapter 3 – Results and discussions (78 pages); Conclusion and proposal (2
pages). The thesis consulted 112 references with 27 Vietnamese conferences, 83
English references and 2 internet site. Besides, the thesis has a list of publications
and the companied appendix.
Chapter I
SCIENTIFIC BASICS AND OVERVIEWS
1.1. Scientific basics
In Vietnam, honey bees play a very important role in life. Valuable products from
honey bees include: honey, beeswax, pollen... Besides, they also play role in
pollinating many plant species, helping to disperse plant pollen, participate in
biological indicators. There have not been many studies on the species component of
honey bees of Vietnam and they have been conducted since 2008 (Le Xuan Hue,
2008, 2010; Khuat et al., 2012).
Foods of honey bees belonging to the family Apidae are pollens. The composition
of the food is accumulated in different parts of honey bee species such as: lead (Pb)
which is accumulated in excrement (Goloskov & Pimenov, 1972), copper, iron and
zinc are also found in excrement but at low concentrations, while iron is found at high
concentrations in specialized cells in the abdomen, copper and zinc are deposited in the
muscles of the thorax (Hsu Yuan and Chia Welli, 1993). Therefore, using honey bee
species as an indicator for environment has been carried out by many scientists in the
world. However, in Vietnam, these problems have not been researched.
1.2. Overviews
1.2.1. The studies in the world
1.2.1.1. Studies on species component and distribution of Apidae honey bee species
Studies on species component of the family Apidae on the world were conducted
quite early. In 1897, Bigham recorded 278 species of honey bees belonging to 29
genera in India. Lieftinck (1944) recorded 9 species belonging to genus Anthophora
in Malaysia, among them, 7 species were new for science and provided identification
keys this genus. Studies on genus Thyreus in USA brought out identification key to
each sub-genus, including sub-genera Xeromelecta, Melecta, Melectomimus,
Meleciomorpha and recorded a new sub-genus Nesomelecta (Michener, 1948).
Identification key for species, illustrated images for classifying characteristics of
genus Amegilla were provided (Lieftinck, 1956). Studies on genus Protomelissa
were published by Bigham (1897), Cockerell (1911), Cockerell (1929), Cockerell
(1926), Lieftinck (1944), Lieftinck (1944).
Studies of Shiokawa and Hirashima (1982) recorded 3 species of sub-genus
Ceratinidia belonging to genus Ceratina in Eastern Asia and described 2 new
species Ceratina takasagona and Ceratina maai.
In 2010, a new species Xylocopa atamisquensis was discovered in Argentina.
(Lucia and Abrahamovich, 2010). Warrit et al. (2012) recorded 9 species belonging
to sub-genus Ceratinidia in Thailand, among them 1 more new species Ceratina
