Produção de própolis por abelha melífera africanizada (Apis mellifera L.) na caatinga do médio jaguaribe cearense

Abstract

The present work aimed to study the production and quality of propolis collected by the Africanized honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) in the caatinga vegetation of Baixo Jaguaribe region in the state of Ceará, Brazil, as well as any influence of propolis collection on honey production. Five apiaries, each of them containing 25 Africanized honey bee colonies inhabiting Langstroth standard hives, were chosen in the county of Limoeiro do Norte/ - Ceará. From each apiary, 20 colonies were chosen at random, 10 for propolis and honey production, which received propolis collecting devices, and tem only for honey production. The experiment initiated in January and ended in December 2010. Propolis collection was carried out at every 30 days, when it was detemined the amount produced as well as contents of humidity, wax, mechanic mass, oxidation índex, phenolic substances and flavonoids. Propolis production was obtained from the 10 colonies of each apiary and propolis quality from the two most productive ones. Honey harvestings were carried out when combs in the supers were over 90% capped. Results showed no significant effect of interaction between the factors period of the year and place, nor period of the year and propolis production. No significant difference was found between honey production from colonies producing propolis to those under no propolis colection. According to the data analyses otained for flavonoid and phenolic componds contents, there was no significant interaction between the factors period and place of propolis collection. There was no significant differences between places (apiaries). However, there was a significant difference (P<0,01) between the periods of the year, in a way that the propolis collected during the rainy season showed a greater flavonoid and phenolic compounds proportion. Data analyses for humidity, wax, mechanic mass and oxidation time showed no significant interaction between the factors period and place of propolis collection. The same happened to humidity, wax, mechanic mass and oxidation time in regard to the periods of the year. Significant differences between periods and places (P<0,05) were observed to wax content: propolis collected during the dry season showed a higher wax content in relation to that propolis collected dring the rainy season.; and, between the amount of wax obtained in the apiary Moisés 1, the one with lower wax content, in relation to the apiaries Moisés 3 and Manilha 2. When the content of mechanic mass was compared in the apiaries, there was significant difference (P<0,05), and the propolis collected in the apiary Moisés 1 showed a higher proportion of mechanic mass in relation to the other four apiaries, which did not differ among them. Also, in the comparison among places, time of oxidation varied significantly (P<0,05), and the propolis collected in Altamira 2 presented lower oxidatioin time in relation to the other places. It is concluded that: quantitative propolis production in the caatinga vegetation of the Baixo Jaguaribe region is not influenced by the dry and rainy seasons, but can be affected by the place where apiaries are installed; qualitatively, the propolis produced in the caatinga vegetation of Baixo Jaguaribe region is influenced by the sazonality and place where the apiaries are installed, and the rainy season produced the best quality propolis; and, propolis collection does not interfere with honey production.