- Apis nigrocincta
Taxobox
name = Philippine Honey Bee
regnum =Animal ia
phylum =Arthropoda
classis =Insecta
ordo =Hymenoptera
subordo =Apocrita
superfamilia =Apoidea
familia =Apidae
subfamilia =Apinae
tribus =Apini
genus = "Apis"
species = "A. nigrocincta"
end_placement
binomial = Apis nigrocincta
binomial_authority = F. Smith, 1861"Apis nigrocincta" is a species of
honey bee that inhabits the Philippine islands ofMindanao andSangihe as well as the Indonesian island ofCelebes orSulawesi .The species builds nests in cavities like the closely related "
Apis cerana ". In fact, there are few substantial differences between the two species: the genitals of the respective drones, for instance, are identical. However, there are small morphological differences, genetic polymorphism in themitochondrial DNA , as well as behavioral differences.In areas where the "A. cerana" and "A. nigrocincta" live together, they can most immediately be distinguished by their coloration and size: "A. cerana" tends to be darker and smaller, while "A. nigrocincta" tends to be larger and have a yellowish
clypeus (the lower area of the face).The architecture of the colonies is also a point of difference: the opening of the drone cell of "A. cerana" is covered in wax, under which there is a conical cocoon with a central hole or pore. In "A. nigrocincta", however, the cell of the drone has a narrow opening, without a hard wax cap and hole. In addition, the queens of "A. nigrocincta" generally create colonies with greater numbers of drones than those of "A. cerana".
Another noticeable behavioral difference between the species is the time of day at which they prefer to gather pollen.
"A. nigrocincta" contracts the parasite-caused honey bee disease
Varroatosis by playing host to the species of "Varroa" mite known as "Varroa underwoodi ". In this way, they are similar to "Apis cerana nuluensis ", which is also susceptible to the same species of parasite.References
*Hadisoesilo S., Otis G.W., Meixner M. "Two distinct populations of cavity-nesting honey bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in South Sulawesi, Indonesia." "Journal of the Kansas Entomology Society". Vol 68 (1995), 399–407.
*Smith D.R., Hagen R.H. "The biogeography of "Apis cerana" as revealed by mitochondrial DNA sequence data". Journal of the Kansas Entomology Society". Vol 69 (1996), 294–310.
*Smith D.R., Villafuerte L., Otis G., Palmer M.R. "Biogeography of "Apis cerana" F. and "A. nigrocincta" Smith: insights from mtDNA studies", "Apidologie" 31 (200), 265–280.External links
* [http://www.culturaapicola.com.ar/apuntes/meliponas/apis_meliponas.htm Collection of scholarly articles on "Apis nigrocincta]
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