Abstract: Stingless/meliponine bees are eusocial insects whose polylactic nature enables interaction with a wide variety of wild plants and crops that enhance pollination and, hence, support ecosystem services. However, their true potential regarding pollination services and honey production is yet to be fully recognized. Worldwide, there are over 800 species of meliponine bees, with over 20 species documented on the African continent. Out of these, only 12 species have been well documented ...
Abstract: Chalcidoidea are mostly parasitoid wasps that include as many as 500 000 estimated species. Capturing phylogenetic signal from such a massive radiation can be daunting. Chalcidoidea is an excellent example of a hyperdiverse group that has remained recalcitrant to phylogenetic resolution. We combined 1007 exons obtained with Anchored Hybrid Enrichment with 1048 ultra-conserved elements (UCEs) for 433 taxa including all extant families, >95% of all subfamilies, and 356 genera chosen ...
Abstract: Bioconversion of livestock wastes using insect larvae represents an emerging and effective strategy for waste management. However, knowledge on the role of the garden fruit chafer (Pachnoda sinuata L.) in waste recycling and influence on the diversity of microbial community in frass fertilizer is limited. Here, we determined whether and to what extent the conversion of cattle dung into insect frass fertilizer by P. sinuata influences the frass’ microbial community and its associa...
Abstract: A bee’s ability to return home, its homing ability, can be used as a proxy for the maximum foraging distance of that species. Body size is hypothesized to affect foraging distance with larger bees having larger foraging ranges. In this study, we estimated the maximum foraging distance of six different afrotropical stingless bee species (Meliponula bocandei, Meliponula ferruginea, Meliponula togoensis, Meliponula beccarii, Plebeina armata and Hypotrigona gribodoi.) in two differen...
Abstract: The small hive beetle Aethina tumida Murray, is an African native that has become an invasive pest of honeybees in North America. The beetle is capable of rapid population growth on pollen,honey, and bee brood. It is also capable of feeding and reproducing on various kinds of fruit, but its ability to sustain population growth on diets other than bee products has remained unknown. We examined this question by observing A. tumida on 2 diets: pollen dough (inoculated with a species o...
INTRODUCTION Introduction to the topic of climate change in East Africa within the past decade is vital for understanding the environmental challenges faced by the region. Over the years, East Africa has experienced significant changes in weather patterns, including prolonged droughts, unpredictable rainfalls, and increased temperatures. These changes have had a profound impact on agriculture, water security, and the livelihoods of millions of people living in the region.
Abstract: Insects are among the most successful organisms in the animal Kingdom. Their capacity to survive and reproduce depends greatly on their ability to identify and respond selectively to cues from a heterogeneous environment. They can identify conspecifics and mates, differentiate between hosts, both plant and animal, and distinguish between many microclimatic factors such as variation in humidity, temperature and airflow. All these factors are attributed to the complexity of their sen...
Abstract: The honeybee, Apis mellifera L., is indispensable to global food security, poverty alleviation and natural biodiversity conservation. However, the ecto-parasitic mite Varroa destructor and its associated pathogens are one of the most serious threats to the health of honeybees, especially both wild and managed European honeybees found in Europe and North America. In contrast to European honeybees, their African counterparts appear to be minimally affected by these stressors. However...
Abstract: The East African region is a major hot bed for old and newly emerging arboviral diseases that are occurring with increasing frequency and magnitude. The lack of effective treatment or preventive vaccinations for most of these infections emphasizes the need for surveillance to monitor circulation, which is critical for informing public health decision for early warning and response. Monitoring mosquito populations and mosquito-borne virus activity are the cornerstones of surveillanc...
Abstract: Nitrogen (N) deficit is one of the limiting factors to food security in most developing countries while the excessive use of N has resulted in environmental contamination. Timely N availability, at the right rate is crucial to improving crop yield and N use efficiency in farming systems. Therefore, understanding nitrogen dynamics under different farming systems is essential to improve N use and recovery efficiencies of crops and in addressing environmental impacts associated with i...
Abstract: Pachnoda interrupta (Olivier) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) is a damaging pest of sorghum,other cereals and horticultural crops such as maize, wheat, barley, bananas, guava etc. in Africa which at times results in complete crop losses. Current control strategies heavily rely on chemical pesticides. Controlling adult beetles through application of insecticides,in addition to being detrimental to the environment and the ecology, does not provide long lasting control.Thus, efficient biol...
Abstract: Tsetse flies (Glossinidae) are important biological vectors of trypanosomes, the protozoan parasites that cause Nagana and sleeping sickness. They are distinguished into three taxonomic groups; morsitans, palpalis and fusca. Morsitans and palpalis group tsetse species are the most important vectors of both nagana and sleeping sickness. Control methods of nagana and sleeping sickness that target the vector all exploit particular aspects of tsetse biology. So far none of the methods ...
Abstract: Pathogens causing African animal trypanosomiasis (AAT), the major livestock disease in subSaharan Africa, belong to the salivarian group of the African trypanosomes, which are transmitted by the bite of the tsetse fly (Glossina spec.). T. vivax, T. congolense and T. brucei brucei are major pathogens of cattle in particular, causing nagana, with dramatic socio-economic consequences for the affected regions. The parasites additionally have a huge reservoir of other livestock and wild...
Abstract: The thesis answers the general question of whether the quality of artificially reared insect species should be based on performance tests for intended use or whether quality should be based on a more holistic biological approach. The empirical research is carried out using the lepidopteran leafroller 'Cnephasia' jactatana (Walker). The thesis defines biological performance and quality in terms of the success of an insect population in survival and reproduction and regards the labor...
Abstract: The maize stalk borer Busseola fusca Fuller is a serious pest of maize in the highland areas of Kenya. In an effort to generate information that could be useful for integrated management of the pest, the main factors studied in the current investigations were its biology and ecology. Other studies involved its population patterns in relation to planting dates, crop losses caused by the pest and evaluation of crop loss assessment techniques used in estimation of losses due to ~. fus...