EFFECT OF BROOD PHEROMONES ON SOME CHARACTERISTICS OF HONEY BEE QUEENS.

The present study was carried out in private apiary in El-Kady village, Minia Governorate, from April to May in two seasons 2019 and 2020 to study the effect of brood pheromones on some characteristics of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) queens. Six brood pheromones (Ethyl Palmitate, Methyl Linoleate, Methyl Linolenate, Methyl Oleate, Methyl Palmitate and Methyl Stearate) were added to melted wax in concentration of 10^-3 to make wax cups for queen rearing. The results indicated that Ethyl Palmitate, Methyl Linoleate, Methyl Linolenate, Methyl Palmitate and Methyl Stearate were effective in improving some characteristics of honey bee virgin queens such as body weight (mg), Length and width of head capsule (mm), number of ovarioles and spermatheca volume (SV) than the control. Methyl Linoleate, Methyl Palmitate and Methyl Stearate were more effective than the rest of the treatments in the two experimental seasons. Concerning the increasing percentages Ethyl Palmitate, Methyl Linoleate, Methyl Linolenate, Methyl Oleate, Methyl Palmitate and Methyl Stearate had increasing rate of 2.52, 4.41, 2.26, 0.55, 4.55 and 4.22 % for body weight, respectively but for length of head capsule(mm) were 2.59, 8.72, 2.86, 7.90, 7.63 and was decreasing for Methyl Oleate by -1.23 %. While the mean values percentages of head capsule width (mm) were 1.94, 4.85, 2.22, 4.44, 4.30 increasing and it was decreasing for Methyl Oleate -0.28 %. In regard to the number of ovarioles the mean values were 6.48, 16.93, 6.18, 13.46, 12.58 increasing and it was decreasing for Methyl Oleate - 0.88 %; as for spermatheca volume (mm³) they were 5.91, 12.20, 5.12, 0.79, 11.42 and 11.02%, respectively compared with the control.