Distribution and prevalence of Nosema apis and N. ceranae in temperate and subtropical eco-regions of Argentina

• Presence of pure N. ceranae-infected colonies in all studied regions.
• A significantly higher proportion of co-infection in the temperate study region.
• Colonies with pure N. apis-infection exclusively in the subtropical regions.

A total of 361 colonies from 59 apiaries located in two temperate and three subtropical eco-regions were examined during the post-harvest period to determine distribution and prevalence of Nosema spp. Apiaries from subtropical eco-regions showed a lower spore count than those from temperate eco-regions. Pure N. ceranae and co-infection were detected in apiaries from all regions. In contrast, pure N. apis infection was exclusively observed in the subtropical study region. The predominant detection of N. apis in a subtropical region joining a southern temperate region where mainly co-infected apiaries were identified is in contrast to previous reports.

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