Popular Types of Bees
There are believed to be around 20,000 different bee species. Far too many to mention and far too many for you to want to read about! Races of honey bees are of course bees that are native to or originate from their own country of origin. Because of all living things in our wonderful natural world there are probably some that have not even been discovered by man yet. We can be happy these bees are around for us to all benefit from the health benefits they bring us. Most types of bees are solitary creatures (insects) and they tend to live alone possibly because they have opted out of bee society!. However they do get together to mate. The largest type of bee is the leaf-cutter bee which is about four centimeters long. And the smallest is the stingless bee native to Brazil. This little bee is only about two to five millimeters long. There are bee species in almost every country in the world apart from the North and South Poles and in very hot deserts. Some bees are woodland bees, they of course like to live and nest in wood. It’s worth checking any little cavities you may have in your walls or lofts and please call the experts in to deal with them safely. Some species even live in the earth,they like alkaline soil. Best known bees are the Bumble bee and Carder bees. And some bee species are very sociable, they are the ones who live together in groups and colonies like honey bees and bumble bees, these are the types of bees we all have heard about. There is even a parasitic type bee, a bit like the cuckoo in the world of birds. They nest and feed off other bees species nests and food, hmmm, wonder how they get away with that! Types of Bees colours are quite varied, not just the black, gold and yellow most of us think. No, their colours are far more varied; there also exists blue, red, green and metallic coloured bees species. However, it’s important and fascinating to know that even though there are many races of honey bees which are named as such because they are the only types of bees to make honey. Their fantastic product before we can enjoy the benefits of honey is of course raw honey. Italian honey Bees are a sub-species of the Western honey bee. They originally come from the continental parts of Italy, North of Sicily and south of the Alps. It is thought that they survived the last ice age. Tough little things aren’t they! Their other fancy name is: Apis mellifera ligustica. It is also the most widely used type of bee for the production of honey. It is a tough little bee species able to adapt to almost any climate however, over time it has been discovered that it doesn’t like humid tropical conditions or very harsh winters much. They also tend not to huddle together so tightly during cold weather which means they have to consume far more food to provide the warmth they need. Because these types of bees breed during Autumn times this is also a time when they eat far more. Depending on their individual variety their colours vary slightly but in general they are brown and yellow. Their bodies are also smaller than some other bee species with shorter overhairs. Their tongues range in length from 6.3mm – 6.6mm. These types of bees are known to build superb combs which they cover with brilliant white caps. They are excellent little housekeepers (busy little bees) which in turn helps to keep their hives clean leaving them more able to fight off some diseases and parasites. These types of bees use a plant resin called Propolis to disinfect their hives and seal any cracks. These types of bees can be found mainly in the USA, UK, Germany, New Zealand, Australia and Finland where they were introduced during the 19th century. Unfortunately these races of honey bees are prone to robbing other hives! However, they do not tend to drift too far. This bee species do appear to have excellent qualities which is why they are the most favoured of all the honey bee species for beekeepers and breeders particularly producers of organic honey. Carniolan bees or Apis mellifera carnica are the second favourite types of bees for keepers and breeders. One of the reasons being they show very gentle behaviour towards their keepers. They are found mainly in Slovenia which is where they originate from however are also found Austria, Hungary, Romania, Croatia, Bosnia and Serbia. This type of bees sense of orientation is better than the Italian bee which means less drifting and they tend not to rob quite as much. They like to forage early in the morning and late afternoon and prefer cool wet days. Sometimes these races of honey bees are referred to as the grey bee because of their brown-grey colour and some have brown rings and dots on them. Their tongues are quite long 6.5mm-6.7mm which makes it easy for them to collect nectar from clover. Strangely, as this bee species are considered second favourite in the production of honey, they do tend to have a low ability to build combs and produce wax! These types of bees can be prone to swarming however this is reduced by careful selective breeding. They don’t get lost very easily and generally find their way home without much difficulty. In an average bee colony during the summer months, you can expect to find one queen bee, 250 drones, 20,000 worker bees who collect the food they need, 40,000 workers who look after the nest and the babies, 7000 eggs which are about the size of a "comma", 10,000 larvae and 20,000 pupae.........Phew.......that's one busy household!
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