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Following years of its exploitation from only wild colonies, the stingless bee (Meliponula bocandei Spinola, 1853) was recently domesticated in Uganda. Products currently harvested by the beekeepers are honey and propolis. Studies from other countries have shown that stingless bees produce honey that is distinct in physicochemical properties. Therefore, in an effort to lay a foundation for the development of quality standards for stingless bee honey in Uganda, we collected M. bocandei honey from the Western Highlands and Lake Victoria Crescent agroecological zones. A selected set of physicochemical properties (moisture content, viscosity, water activity, electrical conductivity and HMF) of the honey were determined. Results reveal the following means of the physicochemical properties: moisture content (26.45 ± 3.9%), viscosity (38.32 ± 2.25 Pa.s), water activity (0.71 ± 0.04%), electrical conductivity (0.229 ± 86.91 mS/cm), pH (4.15 ± 0.68), and HMF (5.42 ± 4.78 mg kg−1), The low mean HMF reveals that stingless bee honey from these two agroecological zones is of good quality. Overall, the mean values of the physicochemical parameters measured are within the figures in the East African Community standards for stingless bee honey. We recommend investigations to establish the diversity of forage plant resources used by the stingless bee M. bocandei in order to boost meliponiculture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although Braula coeca does not parasitize honey bees, it causes economic impact when its larval stage burrows under the capping of honey combs. We sampled 175 and 195 honey bee colonies between December 2014–September 2015 during the dry and wet seasons respectively from two highland agro-ecological zones of Uganda with the aim of establishing B. coeca presence, infestation levels and its knowledge by beekeepers. The results confirmed the presence of B. coeca with infestation levels being high during the dry season compared to the wet season. Infestation levels of the B. coeca were generally lower than those reported in other countries suggesting that local honey bees have mechanisms that maintain low pest levels. Finally, majority of the beekeepers were not aware of this pest and were not carrying out any targeted control measures against B. coeca or Varroa destructor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]