1899 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



501 



But these two species differ from any known 

 variety of A. metlifica in that the nest consists 

 of a single slab of comb only, which is built 

 out in the open air from the horizontal branch 

 of a tree or bush. 



The geographical distribution of each of 

 these species is about the same. It extends 

 over the Indian Peninsular and the East 

 Indian Archipelago. In any part of this area 

 where the climatic and other conditions suit 

 them, both these species are common, fre- 

 quently abundant, so there is no ft ar at present 

 of their becoming extinct. 



An essential condition in the climate is trop- 

 ical heat ; and even in their native country 

 these bees can not stand the cooler tempera- 

 ture of only slight elevations, 

 though these elevations are 

 often more generally favora- 

 ble to bee- life on account of 

 the more varied and abund- 

 ant flora they produce. 



APIS DORS AT A, FAB 



Apis dorsata may be distin- 

 guished roughly from A. 

 florea by its much larger size 

 and by its smoky wings. It 

 builds a comb 3 to G- feet long, 

 1 to 2 feet deep, and 2 to 3 

 inches thick, from the hori- 

 zontal branches of forest-trees 

 in the Indian jungles, some- 

 times from projecting ledges 

 in rocks on the banks of 

 rivers, etc. The colonies are 

 generally gregarious. There 

 are several varieties — some 

 entirely black, others more 

 or less yellow. The typical 

 form has the base of the ab- 

 domen yellow. Apis dorsata 

 is the largest hone}'- bee 

 known. It is lazy and bad- 

 tempered. It gathers very 

 little honey, but secretes a 

 great deal of wax for its 

 comb, and this is collected 

 and sold by the natives. This 

 honey-bee has not been do- 

 mesticated. 



ta, by F. Smith, on account of this appendage, 

 and it was not until some years later that its 

 relation to the workers of A. florea was estab- 

 lished. I found the drone, here shown, in a 

 queenless colony, in January, before the new 

 drones had hatched out. Notice how large the 

 queen is, compared to the worker. 



APIS MELLIFICA, LINN. 



Our domestic Apis iiiel/iflca runs into a 

 great many varieties or races (not true spe- 

 cies) in different localities of the Old World. 

 Italians, Carniolans, Cyprians, Tunisians, are 

 the names of some of these. In India varieties 

 are found that are quite different fiom those 

 here named. One of these is calKd Apis In- 



APIS DORSATA 



Worker 



rV r/\er 

 variety ZotaCa. 



AP»S FLOR£A 



Worker 



Prone 



APIS MELLIFICA 



Wort 



Varitky Indicq. 



5kAt>£N' 



APIS FLOREA, FAB. 



Apis florea is the smallest 

 honey-bee known. The comb 

 is 4 to 6 inches long and 3 

 or 4 inches deep, and is gen- 

 erally built in low bushes. 

 The wax is nearly black, and 

 of no value. This is a very 

 beautiful little bee ; the pale 

 bands on the abdomen are of a richer 

 orange color than in the Italian bee, and the 

 narrow belts of white felt at the base of each 

 segment are unbroken and conspicuous. This 

 bee can not sting one's hand except on the 

 back where the skin is thin. It has not been 

 kept in hives. A quite black variety is com- 

 mon in the valleys of the Himalayas. The 

 drone of this species has an extraordinary ap- 

 pendage to the metatarsi of the posterior legs. 

 When first discovered it was named Apis loba- 



Hjma.la.yoi variety 



Common Italian- 

 Vari'tt y 



SPECIMENS OF DIFFERENT BEES (LIFE SIZE). 

 GRAPHED BY F. W. L. SLADEN. 



dica. This is much smaller than any of the 

 European varieties mentioned above. Its 

 commonest form is much yellower than the 

 yellowest Italians, the hinder part of the 

 thorax and almost the whole of the abdomen 

 being pale yellow. The queens are said to be 

 exceedingly prolific. 



At Darjeeling, in the Eastern Himalayas, 

 they have a variety of Apis mellifica rather 

 like our western bees. When I was in India, 

 two years ago, I visited an apiary of these 



