INTERACTION BETWEEN BEES AND CULTIVATED PLANTS: POLLEN CONTRIBUTION IN HONEYS FROM BURKINA FASO

Abstract

The domestic honeybee forages on melliferous plants, collecting nectar, pollen, and resin to feed the colony and transform nectar into honey, the principal product of this interaction. This study focused on the palynological characterization of raw honeys from major agricultural zones of Burkina Faso, in order to better identify the floral origin of pollen collected by bees for their needs. Nine (09) raw honey samples from nine (09) apiaries distributed across three (03) phytogeographical zones of Burkina Faso were collected and analyzed. The results revealed 123 pollen taxa grouped into 110 genera and 47 families. Among these identified taxa, six (06) corresponded to cultivated plants: Abelmochus esculentus (2.49%), Arachis hypogaea (1.17%), Gossypium hirsitum (2.92%), Hibiscus sabdariffa (2.56%), Sesamum indicum (3.97%), and Vigna unguiculata (1.51%). The families of Leguminosae and Malvaceae were predominant, representing 22.76% and 8.94% of relative abundance, respectively. Quantitative analysis of pollen grains revealed a contribution ranging from 7.64% to 24.87% per honey sample for pollen originating from cultivated plants. Nevertheless, wild plant species remained the most important pollen sources, with a total relative abundance of 85.35%. Knowledge of the botanical origin of pollen grains collected by bees provides insight into foraging strategies in agricultural environments and allows for the assessment of the effective contribution of each type of resource to colony needs.