Categorical Evaluation of Honey Bee Consumption Preferences for Dry Pollen Substitute Candidates

Abstract

Honey bees are essential pollinators for ecosystem sustainability, and pollen represents a primary nutritional resource required for colony development and health. During seasonal periods of pollen scarcity, the use of dry pollen substitutes becomes necessary to support colony nutrition. This study evaluated the consumption preferences of honey bees for 27 dry substitute candidates, categorized as ground products (bee pollen, beetroot, spinach, pumpkin seed), flours (red and green lentil, corn, soybean, oat, buckwheat, wheat germ, breadcrumbs, psyllium husk), ground seeds (chia, sesame, roasted chickpea, black cumin, oleaster), sports supplements/protein sources (whey protein, BCAAs, creatine), and spices (cumin, red pepper, black pepper, thyme, turmeric, ginger). The results demonstrated marked differences in consumption preference among material categories. Red lentil flour exhibited the highest acceptance, exceeding even natural bee pollen consumption, and emerged as the most promising substitute candidate. Moderate consumption was observed for green lentil, corn, oat, soybean, and wheat germ flours, whereas buckwheat flour and breadcrumbs showed limited acceptance. Most ground vegetables, seeds, sports supplements, and spices were either minimally consumed or entirely rejected. A notable observation was that the ultra-fine particle structure of whey protein caused substantial dust dispersion through bee wing fanning, which appeared to discourage product interaction. These findings indicate that, beyond nutritional composition, physical characteristics such as particle size and dustiness strongly influence honey bee acceptance. In particular, lentil-based materials appear to have considerable potential for the development of effective dry pollen substitute formulations.