For the development of novel selection traits in honey bees, applicability under field
conditions is crucial. We thus evaluated two novel traits intended to provide resistance against the
ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor and to allow for their straightforward implementation in honey
bee selection. These traits are new field estimates of already-described colony traits: brood recapping
rate (‘Recapping’) and solidness (‘Solidness’). ‘Recapping’ refers to a specific worker characteristic
wherein they reseal a capped and partly opened cell containing a pupa, whilst ‘Solidness’ assesses
the percentage of capped brood in a predefined area. According to the literature and beekeepers’
experiences, a higher recapping rate and higher solidness could be related to resistance to V. destructor.
During a four-year field trial in Switzerland, the two resistance traits were assessed in a total of
121 colonies of Apis mellifera mellifera. We estimated the repeatability and the heritability of the two
traits and determined their phenotypic correlations with commonly applied selection traits, including
other putative resistance traits. Both traits showed low repeatability between different measurements
within each year. ‘Recapping’ had a low heritability (h2 = 0.04 to 0.05, depending on the selected
model) and a negative phenotypic correlation to non-removal of pin-killed brood (r = −0.23). The
heritability of ‘Solidness’ was moderate (h2 = 0.24 to 0.25) and did not significantly correlate with
resistance traits. The two traits did not show an association with V. destructor infestation levels.
Further research is needed to confirm the results, as only a small number of colonies was evaluated