Honey bees and honeydew honey production from oat aphid Rhopalosiphum padi on sorghum plants in Egypt

Abstract

Climate changes may play an important role in the level of plant growth and the degree of their response and sensitivity to insect infections and may affect the distribution and spread of insects. The current study draws attention to the emergence of honeydew honey produced from sorghum plants, which has spread in some governorates of Egypt, including Fayoum, Assiut, and Sohag. Samples of aphids were collected from Sorghum bicolor (L.) plants in Fayoum Governorate during the infestation. Samples were also taken from the beehives after the honeydew honey harvest. The aphids were classified, and the honey samples obtained were analyzed for some physical and chemical characteristics. The results of the research showed that the S. bicolor were infected with oat-birdcherry aphid, Rhopalosiphum padi (L.) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) which caused the appearance of honeydew. The honeybee colonies collected them and produced honeydew honey. Most samples showed high electrical conductivity, and physical and chemical analyses were in accordance with Egyptian standard specifications, while acidity showed a noticeable increase, ranging from 36.0 meq. /kg to 66.5 meq. /kg with a range of 48.83 meq. /kg. Thus, some newly harvest honeydew honey samples exceeded the permissible limits of Egyptian standard specifications while molds and yeasts isolation, enumeration and identification from honeydew honey produced a unique marker from containing fungi Penicillium apimei that produces penicillin. This study may open further future studies on the possibility of the emergence of another type of honeydew honey in Egypt. It may also be good to track these types and set specifications in a way that their precision is consistent with their composition and production conditions without tampering with the quality of the product.