#apini

Nest of the Asian Honeybee

Here we have the poisoned nest of the Asian Honeybee (Apis cerana). If you’re wondering why the nest was poisoned, it’s because this species is actually quite damaging to this area. The Asian Honeybee not only leaves in competition with native bees over nesting areas and food, but they may also carry a certain nasty mite known as the ‘Varroa mite’ (genus Varroa), which can be detrimental to European Honeybee populations (Apis mellifera) (1).

Lets take a closer look at this nest shall we. First we’ll start off with the eggs. You can see an egg inside a brood cell in picture 9. The eggs are very small, and take about three days to develop. After which the fat little larvae emerge, curling up and waiting to be fed by the worker bees. When the larva becomes large enough, the brood cell will be sealed, so the larva’s pupation will be undisturbed. The adult bee will chew its way out of the cell after emerging from the pupae (2).

You can tell which brood cell belongs to which kind of bee based on its appearance. The drones have a distinctly dome-shaped cap with a large pour in the center (pic. 7). Then, of course, there’s the queen’s brood cell, which is large, round and on the edge of the nest (pics 5-6) (3).

When it comes to this species, it’s important to stay informed about the ways in which they are damaging for the environment.

Source (1)

Source (2)

Source (3)

Apis cerana

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