''Apis cerana japonica'' is a
subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
of the
eastern honey bee
''Apis cerana'', the eastern honey bee, Asiatic honey bee or Asian honey bee, is a species of honey bee native to South Asia, South, Southeast Asia, Southeast and East Asia. This species is the sister taxon, sister species of ''Apis koschevnikovi ...
native to
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. It is commonly known as the . This subspecies was determined, through an analysis of
mitochondrial DNA
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial D ...
, to have originally come from the
Korean peninsula
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
.
They have been observed moving into urban areas in the absence of natural predators.
''A. c. japonica'' is very resistant to the mite ''
Varroa jacobsoni
''Varroa jacobsoni'' is a species of mite that parasitises ''Apis cerana'' (Asian honey bees). The more damaging ''Varroa destructor'' was previously included under the name ''V. jacobsoni'', but the two species can be separated on the bas ...
'', which is commonly found among ''
A. cerana''.
It is also able to adapt to weather extremes, has a long flight duration and is less likely to sting than the western counterpart.
3-Hydroxyoctanoic acid is a signalling chemical emitted by the orchid ''
Cymbidium floribundum'' and is recognized by Japanese honeybees.
Use in apiculture
Beekeepers
A beekeeper is a person who keeps honey bees.
Beekeepers are also called honey farmers, apiarists, or less commonly, apiculturists (both from the Latin '' apis'', bee; cf. apiary). The term beekeeper refers to a person who keeps honey bees i ...
in Japan attempted to introduce
western honey bee
The western honey bee or European honey bee (''Apis mellifera'') is the most common of the 7–12 species of honey bees worldwide. The genus name ''Apis'' is Latin for "bee", and ''mellifera'' is the Latin for "honey-bearing" or "honey carrying", ...
s (''Apis mellifera'') for the sake of their high productivity. However,
western honey bee
The western honey bee or European honey bee (''Apis mellifera'') is the most common of the 7–12 species of honey bees worldwide. The genus name ''Apis'' is Latin for "bee", and ''mellifera'' is the Latin for "honey-bearing" or "honey carrying", ...
s have no innate defense against
Asian giant hornet
The Asian giant hornet (''Vespa mandarinia'') or northern giant hornet, including the color form referred to as the Japanese giant hornet, is the world's largest hornet. It is native to temperate and tropical East Asia, South Asia, Mainland Sout ...
s, which can rapidly destroy
their colonies.
[ Piper, Ross (2007), ''Extraordinary Animals: An Encyclopedia of Curious and Unusual Animals'', ]Greenwood Press
Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. (GPG), also known as ABC-Clio/Greenwood (stylized ABC-CLIO/Greenwood), is an educational and academic publisher (middle school through university level) which is today part of ABC-Clio. Established in 1967 as Gr ...
Japanese honey bees, having evolved alongside the Asian giant hornet, have numerous defensive strategies against the hornets and so are also used in
apiculture
Beekeeping (or apiculture) is the maintenance of bee colonies, commonly in man-made beehives. Honey bees in the genus '' Apis'' are the most-commonly-kept species but other honey-producing bees such as ''Melipona'' stingless bees are also kept. ...
in the country.
Hive
Nest cavity ranges from 10 to 15 liters with a round
comb structure that tends to be uneven. ''A. c. japonica'' will also dismantle an old
hive
A hive may refer to a beehive, an enclosed structure in which some honey bee species live and raise their young.
Hive or hives may also refer to:
Arts
* ''Hive'' (game), an abstract-strategy board game published in 2001
* "Hive" (song), a 201 ...
before moving on to a new one.
Pollination
''A. c. japonica''
pollinates the endangered orchids ''
Cymbidium kanran
''Cymbidium kanran'', the cold-growing cymbidium, is a species of orchid. The species was first described by Makino in 1902 and was first domesticated over 2,500 years ago.
References
kanran Kanran, or Karan, was an Alaafin of the Oyo Em ...
'' and ''
Cymbidium goeringii
''Cymbidium goeringii'', the noble orchid, is an orchid found in temperate locations of East Asia including Japan, China, Taiwan and South Korea. The type specimen
In biology, a type is a particular wiktionary:en:specimen, specimen (or in s ...
'' despite not having
nectar
Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists ...
for the bees to collect, instead releasing
pheromones
A pheromone () is a secreted or excreted chemical factor that triggers a social response in members of the same species. Pheromones are chemicals capable of acting like hormones outside the body of the secreting individual, to affect the behavio ...
used to orient forager bees returning to the hive as a deception tactic in order to be pollinated.
Dancing
''A. c. japonica'', like many other honey bees,
dance in order to inform nestmates of locations for "effective flower resources". However, unlike other honey bees, they do not dance for the location of
propolis
Propolis or bee glue is a resinous mixture that honey bees produce by mixing saliva and beeswax with exudate gathered from tree buds, sap flows, or other botanical sources. It is used as a sealant for unwanted open spaces in the beehive. Pro ...
.
''A. c. japonica'' also perform short waggle dances after their nest has been scouted by hornets or other competing bees in addition to hive smearing to facilitate the protection of the nest.
Protective behaviors
When threatened by hornets or other competing
honey bees
A honey bee (also spelled honeybee) is a eusocial flying insect within the genus ''Apis'' of the bee clade, all native to Afro-Eurasia. After bees spread naturally throughout Africa and Eurasia, humans became responsible for the current cosmo ...
, ''A. c. japonica'' will dance and smear plant material at the entrance of the hive. A threat consists of a hornet or competing bee arriving to the home nest and scouting it, smearing it with pheromones. Performing the dance triggers an emergency, bees will travel a short distance to gather plant material. ''A. c. japonica'' does not discriminate between plant texture, color, or the part of the plant. The bees will then stand at the hive entrance and chew up the plant to
smear the juice over the entrance.
''A. c. japonica'' has a well-known defensive behavior when dealing with hornets which no other honeybee displays. Although a handful of Asian giant hornets can easily defeat the uncoordinated defenses of a honey bee colony, the Japanese honey bee (''Apis cerana japonica'') has an effective strategy.
As a hornet enters the hive, a mob of hundreds of honey bees surrounds it in a ball, completely covering it and preventing it from reacting effectively. The bees violently vibrate their flight muscles in much the same way as they do to heat the hive in cold conditions. This raises the temperature in the ball to the critical temperature of .
In addition, the exertions of the honey bees raise the level of
carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide (chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is transpar ...
(CO
2) in the ball. At that concentration of CO
2, the honey bees can tolerate up to , but the hornet cannot survive the combination of a temperature of and high carbon dioxide level. Some bees do die along with the intruder, much as happens when they attack other intruders with their stings, but by killing the hornet scout, they prevent it from summoning reinforcements that would wipe out the entire colony.
Although it is a commonly accepted theory that the Asian giant hornet may be allowed to enter the Japanese honey bee hive, recent studies suggest that the Japanese honey bee and large hornets actually have a predator-prey “I see you” (ISY) relationship. The ISY relationship is supported by the observation that Japanese honey bee wingbeats become louder and increase in intensity as a bee-hawking wasp (such as an
Asian hornet
The Asian hornet (''Vespa velutina''), also known as the yellow-legged hornet or Asian predatory wasp, is a species of hornet Indigenous (ecology), indigenous to Southeast Asia.
It is of concern as an invasive species in some other countries.
A ...
(''Vespa velutina''), a
Lesser banded hornet (Vespa affinis),
Japanese yellow hornet (''Vespa simillima xanthoptera''), or an
Asian giant hornet
The Asian giant hornet (''Vespa mandarinia'') or northern giant hornet, including the color form referred to as the Japanese giant hornet, is the world's largest hornet. It is native to temperate and tropical East Asia, South Asia, Mainland Sout ...
(''Vespa mandarinia'')) moves closer to the entrance of the hive and that, in most cases, the hornet may retreat when it hears the sound. If the hornet moves closer to the hive, the Japanese honey bees move their wings faster to intensify the warning to the wasp. If the wasp enters the nest the bees will increase their wing movement, form a ball and raise their body temperature.
References
External links
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5309982
cerana japonica
Insects of Japan
ja:ミツバチ