This past weekend, the Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture attended the 2026 Atlantic Bee Tour, hosted by the Prince Edward Island Beekeepers Association in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. With 50 attendees, the event brought together beekeepers, industry members and researchers from across the region. As in previous years, the Atlantic Bee Tour served as an important opportunity for beekeepers to network, learn, and share knowledge. This event included industry updates, hands-on demonstrations and visits to local businesses, all showing the essential role of honey bees in the Atlantic region.

Review of the Atlantic Bee Tour 2026

The first day of the tour consisted of presentations and educational learning about current challenges, industry updates and important information to help other beekeepers. Stephen Farmer, a local beekeeper from PEI and executive member of the PEIBA board, started off the event with an introduction and to say thank you to everyone involved. Cameron Menzies, PEI Provincial Apiarist, opened the morning with an update on the state of beekeeping in the province. He noted that PEI is home to roughly 5,000 commercial hives, used for honey production, pollination, or both, and that the province continues to face significant overwintering challenges. The 2025-2026 winter losses were driven primarily by weak colonies going into fall, harsh weather conditions, poor queens, and starvation. Despite these setbacks, Cameron shared encouraging results from the 2025 summer inspections, which showed low Varroa mite levels, no small hive beetle, and only low levels of European foulbrood. He also emphasized the importance of wild blueberry pollination in PEI, which relies on a 1:1 ratio of local hives to imported hives, showing how important local pollinators are for growers across the province.

Figure 1: Cameron Menzies Presenting (ATTTA ©, 2026)

Following Cameron’s update, attendees heard from Lauren Park of the Canadian Honey Council, who provided a national perspective on current industry priorities. She outlined topics the council focuses on, like miticide registration, pollination issues, and national policy discussions. Lauren also addressed concerns surrounding honey adulteration and importation issues. Lauren also highlighted upcoming industry events, including the 2027 Pollination Symposium in Quebec.

Figure 2: Lauren Park Receiving a gift on behalf of the PEIBA (ATTTA ©, 2026)

The Atlantic Tech Transfer Team for Apiculture shared updates on disease monitoring and research, including Varroa mite surveys, amitraz efficacy testing, and ongoing work related to emerging pathogens such as Vairimorpha (formerly Nosema) and Lotmaria passim. These updates offered attendees a clear picture of the scientific work underway to support evidence‑based management practices throughout the region.

Jeff Lee from Honey Bee Zen Apiaries discussed his own operation in British Columbia, sharing his knowledge of different forages and cover crops to improve forage density and pollinator pathways; this approach is used to strengthen both honey bee and wild pollinator health. Amanda Goodman Lee shared an engaging session on honey marketing, explaining why local honey remains a strong competitor in the market and how producers can communicate value to customers. Also, Jeff and Amanda both talked about tricks they have learned from their beekeeping experience.

The afternoon sessions shifted toward practical demonstrations and applied learning. Karen Thurlow led a microscopy display, showing participants how to prepare slides, identifying Vairimorph, and showed different types of pollen found in colonies. She also shared practical tips from her own operation, offering guidance on efficient equipment use and management strategies. The first day was filled with a balance of scientific and practical learning, providing attendees with lots of informational knowledge.

Figure 3: Fireweed Pollen Under a Microscope (ATTTA ©, 2026)

The second day of the Atlantic Bee Tour brought participants on a bus, showing diverse beekeeping and honey-related companies in PEI. The morning began at Ella’s Forest, where attendees toured the facility and learned about the dried wild blueberry products made. Then followed an in-hive demonstration for determining hygienic behaviour. From there, the group travelled to Red Island Cider for a behind-the-scenes tour of their production facility. The cidery even created a special honey-infused cider for the Bee Tour!

Figure 4: Products from Ella’s Forest (ATTTA ©, 2026)

Figure 5: In-Hive Demonstration of UBeeO® by Stephen Farmer (ATTTA ©, 2026)

After lunch at Founder’s Hall, the tour continued to Island Honey Wine Co. where participants sampled a variety of meads, learned about the business and had a chance to tour the area. This trip showed the diversity of how honey and in-hive products can be transformed into innovative products! The final destination of the tour was at a local beekeeper’s operation, Jason and Monica Campbell. Then the tour ended at New Glasgow for a delicious lobster supper!

Figure 6: Photos from the Island Honey Wine Co. (ATTTA ©, 2026)

The Atlantic Bee Tour was a great event for beekeepers across the region, offering valuable opportunities for learning and meeting members of the industry. The ATTTA team extends sincere thanks to the PEI Beekeeper’s Association for hosting this amazing event. We will look forward to the next Atlantic Bee Tour in 2028.

 Written by Kaitlyn Newton, ATTTA Seasonal Apiculturist

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

As we know, honey bees face many pests and diseases that impact colonies, including trypanosomatids. Trypanosomatids are single-celled, flagellated eukaryotic parasites that are found in many different hosts ¹. In honey bees, the most common trypanosomatid is Lotmaria passim. This species colonizes the hindgut of honey bees and can influence physiology, behaviour and survival. 

What is Lotmaria passim?   

Lotmaria passim was first formally described in 2015 after being distinguished from Crithidia mellificae using molecular and morphological evidence ². The parasite exists as flagellated promastigotes, and as a non-mobile round spheroid that adheres to the gut lining in honey bees ². Morphologically, L. passim cells have a lanceolate or tear‑drop shape with a single flagellum ². L. passim colonizes the ileum and rectum of the honey bee hindgut, as both motile and stationary forms ². The stationary forms are spheroids that form single-layered sheets along the gut wall ². 

Arismendi et al. (2022) examined L. passim prevalence across eggs, larvae, pupae, newly emerged bees, nurses and foragers. L. passim was detected in 21–100% of developmental stages except eggs, where it was absent ³. Pupae, nurse bees and foragers showed high prevalence (>92%) of L. passim ³. Young larvae, old larvae and newly emerged bees showed lower prevalence (<71%) compared to foragers ³. Parasite loads ranged from 1.91 × 10¹ to 7.39 × 10⁵ cell equivalents per bee, with foragers carrying the highest loads ³. These findings indicate that L. passim is present in nearly all developmental stages except eggs ³.

Figure 1: Images of isolated cells of Lotmaria passim, wet slides (A), May Grunwald-Giemsa-stained slides (B) and scanning electron microscope (C) (photo:  Rudelli et al. 2023)

The parasite colonizes the ileum and rectum, where its cells can be shed into the gut lumen and passes to other bees through normal social behaviours ². Transmission occurs when bees ingest infected material during trophallaxis, grooming, or while cleaning contaminated brood cells ³. Honey bees frequently exchange food and contact each other during colony tasks, which are behaviours that create efficient routes for parasite movement between individuals ¹. Forager bees can also pick up fecal material on flowers, allowing the parasite to spread outside of the hive. Pollen brought back to the hive has been shown to contain L. passim, suggesting that contaminated floral resources serve as an environmental reservoir for transmission ³. 

Infected bees show reduced survival and increased sucrose responsiveness, indicating energetic stress and altered feeding behaviour ⁴. At the colony level, L. passim infection lowers vitellogenin expression and contributes to precocious foraging, accelerating physiological aging and reducing worker longevity ⁴.

It is important for beekeepers to understand the different diseases honey bees face, including emerging parasites whose full impacts are still being uncovered. Lotmaria passim is a relatively new trypanosomatid described in 2015, and although its long‑term effects on colonies are not yet fully known, it has already been detected across Canada, the United States, South America and Europe ^2,3,4.

 Written by Kaitlyn Newton, ATTTA Seasonal Apiculturist

Connecting with ATTTA Specialists

If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:

visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/

Email attta@perennia.ca

References:

1. Wallace, F., 1966. The Trypanosomatid Parasites of Insects and Arachnids. Experimental Parasitology, 18, p. 124-193. 

2. Schwarz, R.S., Bauchan, G.R., Murphy, C.A., Ravoet, J., de Graaf, D.C. and Evans, J.D., 2015. Characterization of Two Species of Trypanosomatidae from the Honey Bee Apis mellifera: Crithidia mellificae Langridge and McGhee, and Lotmaria passim n. gen., n. sp. Journal of Eukaryotic Microbiology, 62(5), pp.567-583.

3. Arismendi, N., Castro, M.P., Vargas, M., Zapata, C. and Riveros, G., 2022. The trypanosome Lotmaria passim prevails in honey bees of different ages and stages of development. Journal of Apicultural Research, 61(1), pp.63-69.

4. MacInnis, C.I., 2024. How honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) respond to infection with Nosema ceranae and Lotmaria passim.

5. Rudelli, C., Isani, G., Andreani, G., Tedesco, P. and Galuppi, R., 2023. Detection of Lotmaria passim in honeybees from Emilia Romagna (Italy) based on a culture method. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, 201, p.108007.