Honey Bees

A Honey bee is a flying insect who’s primary purpose is in the facilitating of the production and storage of honey in wax nests or hives. They have a hierarchical structure in the nest of workers, drones and queens. There are only 7 recognized species of honey bee in the world and they all come from the genus Apis. These are:-

1. Apis andreniformis, also known as the black dwarf honey bee – found in tropical and sub-tropical regions of Asia, including India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Burma, Philippines and Southeast China. The most distinguishing feature of this bee are the black stripes on its legs.
2. Apis florea also known as the red dwarf honey bee – found in southern and south-eastern Asia and very closely linked to the the andreniformis bee, having only recently been designated and categorised as a separate species. The florea bee is unsurprisingly very similar in appearance but it is generally of a redder, lighter color than the andreniformis.
3. Apis dorsata, also known as  the giant honey bee – found primarily in forested areas of southeast Asia, such as the wooded regions of Nepal and Malaysia. These bees can reach up to an inch in length.
4. Apis cerana, also known as asiatic or eastern honey bee – found in southern/southeastern asia in China, Pakistan, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia
5. Apis koschevnikovi, also known as Koschevnikov’s bee – found in Malaysia, Indonesia and Borneo. It lives alongside other bee species such as Apis cerana.
6. Apis mellifera, also known as the western or European honey bee – found in Europe, Africa and Asia and the Americas.
7. Apis nigrocincta inhabits only a small geographical area – the island of Mindanao in the Philippines and the islands of Sangihe and Sulawesi in Indonesia.