Other Common Names

• Eastern Honeybee
• Oriental honeybee

Scientific Synonyms

None Listed

Host Types

• Fresh Flowers
• General

Distribution - Regions

• Australasian - Oceanian
• South and South-East Asia

Distribution - Notes

Southern and southeastern Asia, such as China, India, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, Bangladesh and Papua New Guinea.

In the wild, the oriental honeybees construct their multiple-comb nests in dark enclosures such as caves, rock cavities and hollow tree trunks. The normal nesting site is usually close to the ground but may be up to 5 metres above ground.

Source:

http://www.fao.org/docrep/x0083e/X0083E02.htm#B.%20The%20giant%20honeybee%20Apis%20dorsata

 

Diagnostic Characters:

There are these subspecies:

 

Apis cerana cerana

Apis cerana himalaya

Apis cerana javana

Apis cerana indica

Apis cerana sinensis

Apis cerana japonica

 

Apis cerana can be distinguished from Apis mellifera by the following characters:

 

Apis cerana is distinctly smaller and has more prominent abdominal stripes than A. mellifera.  Apis cerana also has a distinct hindwing character as shown in the figure shown.

 

In the wild, Apis cerana prefer to nest in small spaces, such as hollowed out tree trunks. Like the honeybee (Apis mellifera), they are partly domesticated and used in agriculture, mostly in wooden boxes with fixed frames. Apis cerana is the natural host to the mite genus Varroa, a serious pest of the European honeybee (Apis mellifera). By more careful grooming, cerana has a better defense mechanism against Varroa mites.

 

 Differentiation characters between various species of Apis

 

Character         A. mellifera     A. cerana

 

Forewing

Length (mm)     8.0-9.7             7.4-9.0

 

Cubital index    1.65-2.95         3.1-5.1

 

Tomenta           Tergites 3-5      Tergites 3-6

 

Nest                 Several combs  Several combs

                        in cavity            in cavity

                                                           

Character         A. dorsata       A. florea

 

Forewing

Length (mm)     12.5-14.5         6.0-6.9

 

Cubital index    6.1-9.8             2.8-3.7

 

Tomenta           Tergites 3-6      Tergites 3-6

 

Nest                 Single large       Single comb

                        comb at            on twig

                        bottom of         encircling the

                        branch or          branch

                        projecting

 rock

 

Source:

 

http://tnau.ac.in/cpps/productive/apiculture/003a.pdf

Broad Sweep

• General
• Medical & Veterinary

Commodity

• Fresh Flowers
• General

Specifics

Approximately 1,200 species of angiospermic plants are known to be visited by different Apis species all over the World.

Specimen Contact Point

discoverycentre@museum.vic.gov.au

Name

Museum Victoria

Web links

• Biodiversity of Honeybees
• Live Images
• Overview Information on Apis

Padil links

• Honey bee tracheal mite
• Giant honeybee
• Dwarf honey bee
• Common Honeybee
• Cape honeybee
• Africanized honeybee
• Varroa Mite
• Varroa Mite

References

• Akratanakul, P. 1987. Honeybee diseases and enemies in Asia: a practical guide. FAO Agricultural Services Bulletin 68 / 5. FAO: Rome. 51 pp.
• Bailey, L. 1982. A strain of sacbrood virus from Apis cerana. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology 39: 264-265.
• Morse, R.A. and Nowogrodzki, R. (Eds) 1990. Honeybee pests, predators and diseases. 2nd Edition. Comstock Publishing Associates, Cornell Univeristy Press, Ithaca: USA. 474 pp.
• Partap, U. (1999) Conservation of Endangered Himalayan Honeybee, Apis cerana for Crop Pollination. In Asian Bee Journal 1(1): 44-49.
• Verma, L. R.; Partap, U. (1993) The Asian Hive Bee, Apis cerana, as a Pollinator in Vegetable Seed Production. Kathmandu: ICIMOD.
• Wongsiri, S. (1992) Beekeeping Problems in Developing Countries of South-East Asia. In Verma, L. R. (ed) Honeybees in Mountain Agriculture, pp 239-248. New Delhi: Oxford & IBH Publishing Co.

• Ruttner, F. (1987). Biogeography and taxonomy of honeybees.  Springer Verlag publishers London 284pp.

   

Acknowledgements

Kathryn Sparks, AQIS Victoria

Citation

Walker, K. (2007) Asiatic honeybee (Apis cerana) Pest and Diseases Image Library. Updated on 12/28/2007 7:41:51 AM. Available online: http://www.padil.gov.au

Last Updated

12/28/2007 7:41:51 AM

Diagnostic Images

Overview Images

Other Images

Full size images available at http://www.padil.gov.au.