Abstract

This study investigated the effect of soy-based diets supplemented with porcine blood (PB) on the diet's external morphology, nutritional efficacy, and health impacts on honey bees, Apis mellifera L. (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the control diet (maize bee bread) displayed ruptured granules with small particles, whereas the soy-based diets showed varying degrees of protein gelatinization and aggregation depending on the presence of PB. Nutritional analysis indicated that maize bee bread was used as a positive control contained 12.2% protein and provided 312.89 kcal/100 g, whereas the formulated soy-based diets with skim milk or PB showed 13–15% protein, meeting the required needs for optimal honey bee health and development. Survival and longevity assessments showed no significant difference in lifespan between honey bees fed with artificial diets and the control, but all treatment groups outlived the negative control, which fed only on syrup. Moreover, the diameter of the hypopharyngeal gland acini, a key indicator of the nutritional state and health in honey bees, was significantly larger in honey bees fed protein-enriched diets compared with those receiving only syrup. These findings underscore the potential of soy-based artificial protein diets, especially when enhanced with PB, to support honey bee health and longevity, comparable with natural pollen sources.