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Common Honeybee

Scientific Name
Apis mellifera
Scientific Author
Linnaeus
Taxonomy
(Hymenoptera: Apidae)
Status
Exotic Species Establishment in Australia
Reliability
High
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Diagnostic Images

Lateral female view
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Caption
Australia North Queensland - Kuranda, Oct 2005.
Source
Simon Hinkley & Ken Walker Museum Victoria
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Diagnostic Images (9)
Other Images (11)
Diagnostic Notes

There are 24 races of Apis mellifera. The races have different physical and behavioral characteristics such as body color, wing length, and susceptibility to disease. The many geographical races of the common honeybee Apis mellifera, are distributed widely throughout Europe, Africa, and parts of western Asia, as well as in the Americas. All these races display similarities in their basic biological attributes, e.g. the construction of multiple-comb nests in dark cavities, colony social organization and division of labour.

 

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

More Information
Specimen Contact
Museum Victoria
Author
Walker, K.
Created
15/01/2006 10:45 AEST
Last Updated
27/11/2011 10:14 AEST
Citation
Walker, K. (2006) Common Honeybee (Apis mellifera) Updated on 11/27/2011 10:14:14 AM Available online: PaDIL - http://www.padil.gov.au.
Image Use
Free for use under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia License
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