Executive Summary : | Onion being entomophilous, the ecological service offered by bees in pollinating onions is remarkable (Bohart 1970; McGregor 1976; Muller 1983; Lesley and Ockendon 1978; Delaplane and Mayer 2000). Hence, onion seed farmers, regulate the onion pollination by installing bee hives, in particular Italian bees, Apis mellifera. The long-term usage of Apis species for the pollination process is critical for optimal onion seed set. Furthermore, a constant decline in the pollinator population had posed an imbalance in the pollinator supply and demand globally (Aizen et al 2008; Breeze et al 2014). Prices for pollinator-dependent crops have risen in response to pollinator decline (Lautenbach et al 2012); this pattern is likely a reflection of rising pollination costs, as the renting costs a honey bee hive has scaled up fourfold over the last decade (Johnson 2010). Besides, wild pollinators are an undervalued agricultural inputs and hence exploiting these native pollinators can enhance pollinator services in high-revenue cross-pollinated crops. In Maharashtra, onion seed crop is dominated by bee species like Apis dorsata, Apis cerana indica and Apis florae. Among the several biotic and abiotic stressors, intrinsic factor like gut microbiota affects host's behaviour, health, disease resistance, pesticide tolerance, and environmental adaption. The gut microbial community have a direct impact on the insect growth and health by defending the pathogens, triggering the innate immune system, breaking down certain food components, neutralizing dietary toxins and biosynthesizing nutrients (Dillon and Dillon 2004; Martinson et al 2012). Symbiotic and other native non-pathogenic microbial communities in the bee gut may be essential for preserving the nutritional status and defences against infectious diseases. (Evans and Armstrong, 2006; DeGrandi-Hoffman et al 2010; Crotti et al., 2013). The honey bee gut microbiome mainly consisted of phylum Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Euryarchaeota, Firmicutes and Proteobacteria which are mostly opportunistic and beneficial microbes (Jeyaprakash et al 2003; Evans and Armstrong 2006; Cox-Foster et al 2007; Martinson et al 2012; Moran et al 2012). Numerous researchers attempted to investigate the gut microbiome of honey bees in the worldwide, focusing on various features like resistance to viral diseases, pesticide tolerance, and overall health. However, gut microbiome of honey bee species predominantly found in onion seed crop is still unexplored globally. Therefore, the present study aims to explore gut microbiome of common Apis species from onion seed crop. This information will be helpful in developing probiotic based-food supplement to the honey bees under managed beekeeping; thereby enhancing their ecosystem services. The microbiome isolated from these honey bees might be recognized as a genetic resource for bio-processing. |