Over the last quarter century, increasing honey bee colony losses motivated standardized large-scale surveys of managed honey bees (Apis mellifera), particularly in Europe and the United States. Here we present the first large-scale standardized survey of colony losses of managed honey bees and stingless bees across Latin America. Overall, 1736 beekeepers and 165 meliponiculturists participated in the 2-year survey (2016–2017 and 2017–2018). On average, 30.4% of honey bee colonies and 39.6% of stingless bee colonies were lost per year across the region. Summer losses were higher than winter losses in stingless bees (30.9% and 22.2%, respectively) but not in honey bees (18.8% and 20.6%, respectively). Colony loss increased with operation size during the summer in both honey bees and stingless bees and decreased with operation size during the winter in stingless bees. Furthermore, losses differed significantly between countries and across years for both beekeepers and meliponiculturists. Overall, winter losses of honey bee colonies in Latin America (20.6%) position this region between Europe (12.5%) and the United States (40.4%). These results highlight the magnitude of bee colony losses occurring in the region and suggest difficulties in maintaining overall colony health and economic survival for beekeepers and meliponiculturists.

Nectar is a natural product collected by bees from which honey is produced. Honey possesses antibacterial activity and is classified as peroxide and non-peroxide components. The contribution of these components is discussed briefly to ascertain their contribution to the antibacterial activity. Data of origin and floral sources of honey and antimicrobial activity against different bacteria species are summarized. It was concluded that inhibition of growth of bacteria is principally due to the peroxide effect, which is very common in honey wide world because it is a derivative compound from bees. Although the peroxide effect could be reduced when honey is processed, the application of hazard analysis and critical control points could prevent the reduction. The research carried out so far indicates that honey is successfully used to control some food pathogens and owing to this, it could be used in food preservation. Key words: Antibacterial activity, honey, peroxide activity, non-peroxide activity.

Adequate protein levels are necessary to maintain strong honey bee [Apis mellifera (L.)] colonies. The aim of this study was to quantify how pollens with differ