apiculture (ch1, pg 9-13).pdf

Chapter BOLOGY OF BEES Honey bees have been associated with man since the dawn of history. Honey which also includes bees...

Chapter BOLOGY OF BEES Honey bees have been associated with man since the dawn of history. Honey which also includes bees are the most familiar insects of the order Hymenoptera and most highly specialized wasps, ants and some other insects. It is the third largest honey bee order of insects. For thousands of years, humans have plundered natural more recent countries, bee colonies to get honey, bee larvae and beewax. In plundering has given way to bee manàgement. 1.1 History of the honeybees Usefulness of honeybees has been known to man from the prehistorictimes. the other The bees has been mentioned in the Vedas, the Ramayana, the Quran and their combs and hives are found on holy books.Figures and carvings of honeybees, the Coins of both ancient and the tombs, coffins, crowns and mnaces of kings and on word war 1 when modern empires. Honey bees have been used as a weapon in the infuriated swarms were released to hanmper the entry of forces in Belgium. The pain and aches of sciatica, mysterious property of bee venom of relieving muscular rheumatism and arthritis has also been known for a long time. While Primitive methods of beekeeping have been practiced in almost every came into being country from times immemorial, more rewarding scientific method only after the discovery of Movable Fram Hive in1851 by Revd. L. L. Langstroth. In India this method first came to Bengal in 1882 and then to the Punjab 1883. The imperical Entomologist started beekeeping work at Pusa, Delhi in 1907 and contínue with it up to 1919. The beekeeping was taken to the South by Revd. Newton in 1911.After the recommendations of the Royal commission on Agriculture to develop beekeeping asa cottage industry(1928),the practice got a Filip in Madras(1931),the  10 An Introductionto Apiculture The beekeeping in United States, Canada, Punjab(1933) and U.P.(1938). and New Zeland has achieved out-standing success. In India people do Australia not take beekeeping from commercial point of view but only for their interestin routine use, bees, a detailed study of the Since honey is produced by the honey biology of the of apiculture bees is essential for successfulimplementation programme. It is time that this sweet and rewarding pastime is popularised in our country too. 1.2 Systematic position of honey bee Honey bees have been classified as follows: Phylum - Arthropoda (GK,arthros=jointed; podos=foot) This includes bilaterally symmetrical and metamerically segmented animale Body usually covered by tough, chitinous exoskeleton. The segmented body bears Body is divided into head, thorax(cephalotho paired and jointed appendages. and abdomen. Body movements can be effected by sclerites with thin, soft ani articularmembranes between two sclerites. Blood vascular system is open Respiration with the help of gills or trachea or book lung and with the type. aid t copper containing respiratory pigmernt haemocyanin. Excretion occur by green glande or by malpighian tubules. Sexes are generally separate with sexual dimorphism. Fertilization internal and development includes metamorphosis. Class - Insecta (Hexapoda) They are air breathing, mostly terrestrial and aerial and rarely aquatic. Body is divided into head, thorax and abdomen. Head with different types of mouth parts adapted for chewing, biting, piercing, sucking, siphoning or sponging type. 3 Thorax made up of segments, each bearing a pair of jointed legs and two pairs wings. Abdomen is divided into 7-11 segments. Respiration by trachea. Excretory organs are malpighian tubules and sexes are separated. Sub-class - Pterygota (Metabola) Wings are usually present. Abdomen has no appendages except genitalia and cerci. Metamorphosis simple or complex. Division - Endopterygota Wings develop internally. Metamorphosis complete including pupal stage. Order -Hymenoptera(Membrane wings) This includes social or parasitic insects. Mouth parts modified for biting ana hcking. Two pairs of wings, with reduced venation. Organs of defence are stings.  AnIntroduction to Apiculture Worker possesses stings and isabsent in drones. In queen the sting is vestioial Larvae are legless or apodus. Pupae are exarate (Lags are not appressed to body). Sub-order - Clistogastron A distinct constriction between head, thorax and abdomen. Thorax and abdomen are connected by petiole.Ex. Ants, bees, wasps (all with stings). Super-family -Apoidea and social bees. There is caste differentiation.Female antenna has 12 Solitary segments while male antenna has 13 segments. Family - Apidae Bees are of moderate size, females (exceptfor parasitic and robber species and queen of the highly eusocial forms) carry pollen in a corbicula or pollen basket on each hind tibia. Sub-family - Apinae These are minute to moderate sized bees. All species live in perennial, highly eusocial colonies. Tribe - Apini This tribe, the true or stinging honey bees was originally restricted to Eurasia and Africa,but one species, the common honey bee, has been introduced into all parts of the world. Genus - Apis Species - A. dorsata; A. florea, A. cerena indica,A. mellifera Out of above species in India, 3species of honey bees viz. A. dorsata, A. florea A. mellifera is distributed in Europe and western and A. cerena indica occur, whereas countries. 1.3 Habits and habitat all over the social insects reported from Honey bees are highly organized they are active throughout the year but in winter seasion they do world. Although time of flowering little work and do not rear the brood.In spring seasons i.e. at the colonies live in nests or a strong colony with honey rich combs. Their they prepare a remarkable of individuals, exhibiting bee hives, harbouring thousands each other through labour. They communicate with polymorphism and division of the males die. Mating occurs in a nuptial flight, after which a sign language. metamorphosis (holometabolism). Development includes complete  Introductionto Apiculture 12 An bees 1.4 Biology of honey 1.4.1.Types of honey bees round in the tropics, but are Honey bees are active year usually Honey bees belong to the genus Apis in winter dominant in temperate regions. the described in the books is a common order Hymenoptera. The species European species found in India, Sri Lanka and bee, Apis mellifera. Three other honey The South Asian countries are - the giant honey bee (A. dorsata), little honey bee East and A. indica are the (A.florae) and small honey bee (A. indica). A. mellifera domesticated species for commercial beekeeping knownas apiculture. commonly Four of honey bees are species Apis mellifera Apis indica Apis florea Apis dorsata (worker) Fig. 1.1:Honeybee species found in India. From left to right- worker, drone and queen of A. mellifera, A. indica, A. florea and a worker of A. dorsata at the bottom. ) Apis dorsata An Introductionto Apiculture Fabr. (Rock bee). The largest Indian species, throughout India and Burma at lower altitudes.Sarang other names of this bee which yields is distributed and Bombara are maximum amount of honey in comparison 13 to other species. Each colony of thisbee is in the form of a single huge open comb on faces of overhanging rocks or under branches of large trees. The bees are very good honey gatherers, a single comb yielding about 25 kg of honey and about 1.2 kg of beeswax.The workers are very smart and active which may pollinate 12000 flowers daily. On account of their open air habit, rock bees cannot be kept in hives. Besides, they are very irritable, vicious and migrate from place to place in different seasons. (ii) Apis indica Fabr. (Indian bee). The Indian HiveBee, is also found throughout India and Burma, upto an altitude of 3,000 metres. This is slightly smaller then A. dorsata. They prefer to live in dark places and construct several parallel combs about one foot across the protected places like cavities of tree trunks, mud walls, earthen pots, thick bushes, wells and walls of the buildings. This is the only indigenou species capable of being kept in artificial hives. Its honey yield is 3.6-4.5kg on the hills and 1.3-2.2 kg on the plains. The negative qualities of the species is that it is prone to swarming and absconding and is helpless against the waxmoth. (ii) Apis florea Fabr. (Litle bee). The little bee, builds isolated small combs in open situations.It is found all over the plains, never above 450 metres. It makes a single vertical comb of the size of palm suspended from branches of bushes, hedges, bulding, caves, chimnyes, empty cases etc. It does not easily sting and so is mistaken for a stingless bee through it possesses a sting. Its honey yield ispoor, about ½ kg and the consistency of honey is thin. (iv) Apis mellifera Fabr. (European bee). Although this bee produces less honey yet it is found to be the best species from the commercial point of view. It is generally found in Europe and especially, Italy. These can be domesticated easily. The behaviour and looks of A. mellifera are so similar to those of A. indica that one can be easily mistaken for the other. It rarely occurs above 1000 ft. Mean Sea Level. They produce 45 to 180 kg honey per year per colony. 1.4.2 Castes and Morphology of honey bee The individuals of a bee colony belong to three types or castes. There is a singlefertile female or the Queen, a few hundred are fertile males or the drones and the rest are sterile females or the workers.