Preliminary comparison of traps collecting propolis by honey bees

Honey bee, Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae), is a beneficial insect which serves the environment by pollinating plants and collecting/modificating a variety of products: honey, wax, venom, royal jelly, propolis. Among bee products, propolis has attracted the attention of scientists due to the antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral properties and many other significant biological activities (antiinflammatory, antiulcer, local anaesthetic, hepatoprotective, anti-tumor, immunostimulating) that has been found to possess.

Only a few scientific experiments have been previously conducted on techniques on propolis collection by honey bees. The scope of the present study was to contribute to the origination of the best practices in the collection of propolis. For this reason, at three different locations, different types of propolis collection traps, attached on Langstroth bee hives, were tested. Five replications per treatment were used. Results and discussion will be presented.