Participants
Dalibor Titera (CZ), Nikola Kezic / Dragan Bubalo / Maja Drazic (HR), Ales Gregorc (SLO), Marco Lodesani / Cecilia Costa / Raffaele Dall’Olio (I), Ralph Büchler / Claudia Garrido / Kaspar Bienefeld (D), Hermann Pechhacker (A), Yves Le Conte (F), Robert Chlebo / Jan Kopernicky / (SK), Inge Kringeland / Liv Mjskja (N)

Marco Lodesani welcomed the participants of the meeting in Bologna and gave a short introduction on the activity of the Italian National Institute for Apiculture. Ralph Büchler, coordinator of the group, then presented the meeting, expressing enthusiasm for the growing number of participants and presentations. The meeting was organised according to the 2 working groups defined in Ljubljana the previous year: topics pertaining to the working group on breeding standards during the first day and topics pertaining to the working group on conservation the second day.

Honeybee breeding programs and general selection methods
Hermann Pechhacker, coordinator, gave an overview of the working group’s aims and activity. Not having received much feedback from the other participants in the group he concludes that the general breeding rules are clear. The common breeding goals are productivity, Varroa tolerance, gentleness/calmness, low swarming tendency. He suggests that the priority for the future are Varroa tolerance and gentleness. Open questions and points of discussion concern the number of sister queens evaluated in progeny testing: from recent calculations carried out by Kaspar Bienefeld it appears that less than 12 sisters are needed if information from parents and relatives is available, while it is important that per tester and per apiary there are at least 4 colonies; another common problem in the testing is how to convince beekeepers carrying out the evaluations to use the whole range of points (important to show variation); also the doubt remains concerning a standard method to judge selection criteria for varroa tolerance.
This group should discuss whether the breeding goals are suitable and how they can be improved; how population size should be increased (especially for endangered species); how to integrate molecular criteria into race definition criteria.
Ralph Büchler suggested that by the next meeting the group should prepare an update for the Apimondia breeding standards, containing recommendations regarding the estimation of breeding values, the size of the progeny testing group, the spread of the sister queens.
Kaspar Bienefeld presented the progress reached in the German honeybee population, as a consequence of using the breeding values obtained by applying the BLUP animal model with maternal effects (especially modified for the honeybee). This system is now used by all German breeding associations, by the Austrian Carnica Association (ACA) and by the Italian Bee Breeders Register.

Selection on Varroa tolerance and hygienic behaviour
Ralph Büchler presented an overview on the German selection program for Varroa tolerance, which is organised on two levels: the beekeepers carry out routine selection on a large population, according to general criteria (productivity and behavioural characteristics) and tolerance criteria (varroa infestation during the season and hygienic behaviour); the beekeeping research institutes carry out selection on the best performing colonies under high infestation pressure (viability test and tolerance mating stations). Kaspar Bienefeld reported on how the above described varroa tolerance data is analysed, presented the preliminary genetic correlations between traits used to describe Varroa tolerance, showed the importance of considering the population growth of the mite during the whole year rather than absolute infestation values. Claudia Garrido presented the first results of viability testing (overwintering of colonies without treatment) in which the importance of different parameters for survival was evaluated. Ralph Büchler reported on the concept and first results of tolerance mating stations: mating stations in which drones which have undergone a high varroa infestation pressure are used. Marco Lodesani reported on the possibilities of testing for hygienic behaviour in open brood and showed that no correlation was found between the removal of the 2 kinds of brood. Concerning hygienic behaviour Claudia Garrido reported that no correlation was found in a comparison between the two methods, pin test and freeze-killing with liquid nitrogen, results from which are therefore not comparable; Claudia also reported on ongoing research concerning Varroa-induced hygiene. Lastly Hermann Pechhacker illustrated an instrument especially designed to clean varroa drop down sheets, in order to guarantee accurate counting of the fallen mites.

Conservation of European honeybee gene resources
Yves Le Conte presented the report of the working group on conservation. The news from Gabriele Soland in Switzerland is that the whole Canton of Glaros was accepted as a conservation area for A.m.m.; unfortunately no funds are available for genetic analyses, useful to detect hybrids. A second project for a protection zone received financing by the government but was refused by the beekeepers! The news from Karl Pfeiffer in Austria is that the project on the distribution of the autochthonous bee subspecies in Austria was cancelled because of financial reasons. In France there is a project in collaboration with Lionel Garnery to make a survey on biodiversity of A. mellifera in France using mitochondrial and nuclear (microsatellites) markers. Other initiatives to preserve A.m.m. in France include conservation areas, sperm cryoconservation, gene expression depending on the race investigations. The good news is that breeders from the national association ANERCEA are very interested in preserving A.m.m. and asked for help in developing selection strategies.
The breeding strategies and programmes from Norway (Liv Myskja) and Croatia (Nikola Kezic) were presented; recent developments in the breeding programmes of
Slovenia (Ales Gregorc) and Slovakia (Robert Chlebo) were presented.

Molecular genetics
Raffaele Dall’Ollio reported the results of an investigation on microsatellite variability in Italian honeybees, which showed that variability of A.m.ligustica is widespread throughout Italy but no evidence of genetic structure was found; microsatellites proved to be a powerful tool for distinction between subspecies and also to distinguish hybrids. Dalibor Titera reported on the characterisation of A.m.carnica using microsatellite analyses and underlined the importance of determining standards among labs in order to compare the results and establish a tissue bank.

Final discussion and conclusions
All participants were happy about the meeting, the number of participants and presentations, the new members, and supported an ongoing cooperation, although there was recognition of the fact that standardization of methods (such as evaluation of hygienic behaviour, scoring system, microsatellite analysis) will take time to achieve. The fact that several countries are currently adopting the same method for the evaluation of breeding values shows that steps in this direction are being taken.
The group agreed that during the next meeting one or two common goals could be defined and it could work together to reach them in a coordinated way.

Working groups
The group agreed that the working groups should meet in satellite meetings during the 2nd Eurbee Conference which will be held in Prague 10-14 September 2006, to prepare and discuss draft concepts for the next meeting.

International research projects
Robert Chlebo examined the difficulties of funding bee research projects in the 7th framework programme which has “Food, Agriculture and Biotechnology” as priority, and welcomed suggestions and proposals.

Next meeting
Although Kaspar Bienefeld was the first to volunteer Hohen Neuendorf as seat of the next meeting, the group, on the basis of climatic criteria, preferred Avignon, France, where the next meeting will be held at the beginning of 2007.
Yves Le Conte takes over the local organization.