The Caucasian honey bee originates from the high valleys of the Central Caucasus. Georgia is the “central homeland” for the subspecies, although the bees also can be found in eastern Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan.[4]
Longest proboscis, so it can extract nectar from the deepest nectar tissues, where no other honey bees can
Ardent brood production – raising strong colonies
Colonies reach full strength in mid-summer, which is good for areas where the highest nectar flow is in mid-summer
Very great user of propolis
Caucasian bee (Apis mellifera caucasia) proboscis; length is about 7.3 mm
Not beneficial for beekeepingedit
Colonies do not reach full strength until mid-summer, which is an undesirable trait for areas with the highest nectar flow in the spring.
The great use of propolis may be seen as undesirable as it makes hive management more difficult. Frames and hive boxes are glued together more substantially.
Over-wintering in northern climates is not good due to susceptibility to nosema.
Inclined to drifting and robbing
In Turkey, beekeepers purposefully bring hives of Apis mellifera caucasia to areas of dense Rhododendron ponticum blooms to purposefully sequester grayanotoxin laden honey called "mad honey." This coveted novelty honey is referred to as "deli bal" and is neurotoxic.[6] These bees are also less susceptible than A. m. mellifera to acute exposure to Imidacloprid, a neurotoxic pesticide.[7]
Worldwide distributionedit
Frank Benton and Georgian entomologist Ilarion Kavtaradze, circa 1905, Georgia, Caucasus
The Caucasian (Georgian) honeybee has a long history of importance to beekeeping worldwide. The bees were first introduced in the United States in the 19th century. The Caucasian honey bee was a subspecies that came to have enduring interest to U.S. beekeepers. Frank Benton (1852–1919) visited Georgia in 1905 and supported the import of honeybees to the United States.[8]
The Russian revolution and consequent annexation of Georgia by the Red Army in 1921 halted the export of Caucasian honey bees. Subspecies were studied and cultivated primarily by Soviet entomologists. Soviet officials were concerned about preserving the purity of the Caucasian subspecies and outlawed any export without special permission.[9]
In 1932 professor E. F. Phillips was invited to the Soviet Union, Republic of Georgia and spent a month visiting various beekeeping and bee research establishments. E. F. Phillips paid special attention to the unique characteristics of the Apis Mellifera Caucasia (Caucasian honey bee) species - great tongue (proboscis) length and docility and was impressed with the beekeeping potential in Georgia.[10]
International exports were continued from 1969. According to a UK newspaper "GOLDEN BEE the grey mountain bee of the Soviet Union has been judged the best in the world and awarded a gold medal. The grey Caucasian bee is distinguished for its industry and it collects honey, even when it is raining. Many foreign beemasters have requested for the Golden bee and as many as 200,000 have been sent to Europe, Asia and America this year." (Sunday Mirror June 1, 1969)[11]
International awardsedit
The Caucasian honey bee received three gold medals at the international events – at the International Exhibition of Gardening in Erfurt (Germany) in 1961; at the 20th APIMONDIA International Congress in Bucharest (Romania) in 1965; and at the 23rd APIMONDIA International Congress in Moscow in 1971.[12][13]
Sourcesedit
The Hive and the Honeybee Chapter 11 "Races of bees" by Prof. Friedrich Ruttner, published by Dadant, 1975
Referencesedit
^Michael S Engel (1999). "The taxonomy of recent and fossil honey bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae; Apis)". Journal of Hymenoptera Research. 8 (2): 180. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^Michael S Engel (1999). "The taxonomy of recent and fossil honey bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae; Apis)". Journal of Hymenoptera Research. 8 (2): 180. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^Michael S Engel (1999). "The taxonomy of recent and fossil honey bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae; Apis)". Journal of Hymenoptera Research. 8 (2): 180. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^Corso, Molly (2013-04-12). "Georgia Offers a Super Bee to Help Ailing American Bees | Eurasianet". eurasianet.org. from the original on 2019-08-20. Retrieved 2020-07-05.
^amcinternational.org F. Benton International Beekeeping Association
^Suchail, Severine (1999-12-10). "Characteristics of imidacloprid toxicity in two Apis melliferasubspecies". Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. 19 (7): 1901–1905. doi:10.1002/etc.5620190726. S2CID 84822758.
^Status of breeding practices and genetic diversity in domestic U.S. honey bees via www.researchgate.net
^"Caucasian (Georgian) Queen Bees For Sale | Oldest honey in the world! - GoldBee". goldenbee.ge. Retrieved 2020-07-05.
^A beekeeping visit to the Soviet Union. By Eva Crane. Bee World 44 (2) 48 – 76 DATE: 1963
^"Caucasian (Georgian) Queen Bees For Sale | Oldest honey in the world! - GoldBee". goldenbee.ge. Retrieved 2020-07-05.
^. National Geographic (in Georgian). 2017-12-01. Archived from the original on 2018-08-05.
^. Archived from the original on 2019-04-23. Retrieved 2018-05-10.
December 14, 2023
caucasian, honey, apis, mellifera, caucasia, subspecies, western, honey, scientific, classificationdomain, eukaryotakingdom, animaliaphylum, arthropodaclass, insectaorder, hymenopterafamily, apidaegenus, apisspecies, melliferasubspecies, caucasiatrinomial, nam. The Caucasian honey bee Apis mellifera caucasia 3 is a subspecies of the western honey bee Caucasian honey beeScientific classificationDomain EukaryotaKingdom AnimaliaPhylum ArthropodaClass InsectaOrder HymenopteraFamily ApidaeGenus ApisSpecies A melliferaSubspecies A m caucasiaTrinomial nameApis mellifera caucasiaPollmann 1889 1 Synonyms 2 Apis mellifera caucasica Gorbachev 1916Wikispecies has information related to Caucasian honey bee Contents 1 Origin 2 Anatomy and appearance 3 Behavior 3 1 Beneficial for beekeeping 3 2 Not beneficial for beekeeping 4 Worldwide distribution 5 International awards 6 Sources 7 ReferencesOrigin editThe Caucasian honey bee originates from the high valleys of the Central Caucasus Georgia is the central homeland for the subspecies although the bees also can be found in eastern Turkey Armenia and Azerbaijan 4 Anatomy and appearance editShape and size similar to A m carnica Chitin color dark with brown spots at times Hair color lead grey Tongue length up to 7 3 mm 5 Behavior editBeneficial for beekeeping edit Gentle and calm on the comb Longest proboscis so it can extract nectar from the deepest nectar tissues where no other honey bees can Ardent brood production raising strong colonies Colonies reach full strength in mid summer which is good for areas where the highest nectar flow is in mid summer Very great user of propolis nbsp Caucasian bee Apis mellifera caucasia proboscis length is about 7 3 mmNot beneficial for beekeeping edit Colonies do not reach full strength until mid summer which is an undesirable trait for areas with the highest nectar flow in the spring The great use of propolis may be seen as undesirable as it makes hive management more difficult Frames and hive boxes are glued together more substantially Over wintering in northern climates is not good due to susceptibility to nosema Inclined to drifting and robbingIn Turkey beekeepers purposefully bring hives of Apis mellifera caucasia to areas of dense Rhododendron ponticum blooms to purposefully sequester grayanotoxin laden honey called mad honey This coveted novelty honey is referred to as deli bal and is neurotoxic 6 These bees are also less susceptible than A m mellifera to acute exposure to Imidacloprid a neurotoxic pesticide 7 Worldwide distribution edit nbsp Frank Benton and Georgian entomologist Ilarion Kavtaradze circa 1905 Georgia CaucasusThe Caucasian Georgian honeybee has a long history of importance to beekeeping worldwide The bees were first introduced in the United States in the 19th century The Caucasian honey bee was a subspecies that came to have enduring interest to U S beekeepers Frank Benton 1852 1919 visited Georgia in 1905 and supported the import of honeybees to the United States 8 The Russian revolution and consequent annexation of Georgia by the Red Army in 1921 halted the export of Caucasian honey bees Subspecies were studied and cultivated primarily by Soviet entomologists Soviet officials were concerned about preserving the purity of the Caucasian subspecies and outlawed any export without special permission 9 In 1932 professor E F Phillips was invited to the Soviet Union Republic of Georgia and spent a month visiting various beekeeping and bee research establishments E F Phillips paid special attention to the unique characteristics of the Apis Mellifera Caucasia Caucasian honey bee species great tongue proboscis length and docility and was impressed with the beekeeping potential in Georgia 10 International exports were continued from 1969 According to a UK newspaper GOLDEN BEE the grey mountain bee of the Soviet Union has been judged the best in the world and awarded a gold medal The grey Caucasian bee is distinguished for its industry and it collects honey even when it is raining Many foreign beemasters have requested for the Golden bee and as many as 200 000 have been sent to Europe Asia and America this year Sunday Mirror June 1 1969 11 International awards editThe Caucasian honey bee received three gold medals at the international events at the International Exhibition of Gardening in Erfurt Germany in 1961 at the 20th APIMONDIA International Congress in Bucharest Romania in 1965 and at the 23rd APIMONDIA International Congress in Moscow in 1971 12 13 Sources editThe Hive and the Honeybee Chapter 11 Races of bees by Prof Friedrich Ruttner published by Dadant 1975References edit Michael S Engel 1999 The taxonomy of recent and fossil honey bees Hymenoptera Apidae Apis Journal of Hymenoptera Research 8 2 180 Retrieved 4 January 2023 Michael S Engel 1999 The taxonomy of recent and fossil honey bees Hymenoptera Apidae Apis Journal of Hymenoptera Research 8 2 180 Retrieved 4 January 2023 Michael S Engel 1999 The taxonomy of recent and fossil honey bees Hymenoptera Apidae Apis Journal of Hymenoptera Research 8 2 180 Retrieved 4 January 2023 Corso Molly 2013 04 12 Georgia Offers a Super Bee to Help Ailing American Bees Eurasianet eurasianet org Archived from the original on 2019 08 20 Retrieved 2020 07 05 amcinternational org F Benton International Beekeeping Association Jansen Suze 2012 04 19 Grayanotoxin Poisoning Mad Honey Disease and Beyond Cardiovascular Toxicology Cardiovascular Toxicology 12 3 208 15 doi 10 1007 s12012 012 9162 2 PMC 3404272 PMID 22528814 Suchail Severine 1999 12 10 Characteristics of imidacloprid toxicity in two Apis melliferasubspecies Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 19 7 1901 1905 doi 10 1002 etc 5620190726 S2CID 84822758 Status of breeding practices and genetic diversity in domestic U S honey bees via www researchgate net Caucasian Georgian Queen Bees For Sale Oldest honey in the world GoldBee goldenbee ge Retrieved 2020 07 05 A beekeeping visit to the Soviet Union By Eva Crane Bee World 44 2 48 76 DATE 1963 Caucasian Georgian Queen Bees For Sale Oldest honey in the world GoldBee goldenbee ge Retrieved 2020 07 05 ქართული ფუტკრის ამბავი National Geographic in Georgian 2017 12 01 Archived from the original on 2018 08 05 APIMONDIA International Federation of Beekeepers Associations Archived from the original on 2019 04 23 Retrieved 2018 05 10 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Caucasian honey bee amp oldid 1174918438, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
