Data from: Interactions of husbandry, landscape, and immunity in regulating viral loads for managed honey bees

The western honey bee, Apis mellifera, continues to experience widespread
die-offs that threaten their critical ecological and agricultural roles.
Given the recognized impact of viruses on the increased mortality rates,
it is imperative to understand the forces shaping viral infections. In
this study, we explore how hive husbandry, landscape, and immunity
influence viral loads in managed bees. We characterized 43 apiaries across
Central Florida for eight husbandry interventions, five landscape
variables, transcription of four immune genes, and infection intensities
of four viruses: Black Queen Cell Virus (BQCV), Deformed Wing Virus
(DWV-A), Lake Sinai Virus (LSV-2), and Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus
(IAPV). We found that colonies surrounded by more floral resources and
fresh water bodies were associated with increased viral loads and
increased viral coinfections. We speculate that increased floral resources
increased pollinator abundance, thereby increasing transmission rates and
viral richness. We further speculate that increased open water similarly
increased pollinator abundance and/or exposure to immunity-altering
pesticides. Last, we show that husbandry interventions aimed at reducing
Varroa destructor mites can have positive and negative off-target viral
impacts. Our data underscore the importance of landscape, immunity, and
husbandry in honey bee disease dynamics and highlight the complexity of
their interactions.