The Carniolan honey bee (''Apis mellifera carnica'', Pollmann) is a subspecies of the

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" ...

. The Carniolan honey bee is native to

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

, southern

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, and parts of

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Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...

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, and

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Origin

The Carniolan honey bee is the subspecies of the

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" ...

that has naturalised and adapted to the

Kočevje Kočevje (; german: Gottschee; ''Göttscheab'' or ''Gətscheab'' in the local Gottscheerish dialect; it, Cocevie) is a city in the Municipality of Kočevje in southern Slovenia. It is the seat of the municipality. Geography The town is loc ...

(Gottschee) sub-region of Carniola (

), the southern part of the

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region, southern Pannonian plain and the northern

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

. These bees are known as Carniolans, or "Carnies" for short, in English. At present this subspecies is the second most popular among beekeepers (after the

Italian bee ''Apis mellifera ligustica'' is the Italian bee which is a subspecies of the western honey bee (''Apis mellifera''). Origin The Italian honey bee is thought to originate from the continental part of Italy, south of the Alps, and north of Sicily ...

Qualities

It is favored among beekeepers for several reasons, not the least being its ability to defend itself successfully against insect pests while at the same time being extremely gentle in its behavior toward beekeepers. These bees are particularly adept at adjusting worker population to nectar availability. It relies on these rapid adjustments of population levels to rapidly expand worker bee populations after nectar becomes available in the spring, and, again, to rapidly cut off brood production when nectar ceases to be available in quantity. It meets periods of high nectar with high worker populations and consequently stores large quantities of

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

and pollen during those periods. They are resistant to some diseases and parasites that can debilitate hives of other subspecies.

Anatomy and appearance

Carniolan honey bees are about the same size as the Italian honey bee, but they are physically distinguished by their generally dusky brown-grey color that is relieved by stripes of a subdued lighter brown color. Their chitin is dark, but it is possible to find lighter colored or brown colored rings and dots on their bodies. They are also known as the "grey bee". Biene auf Großer Fetthenne 06

Carniolan bees are nearly as big and long as the Western European black bees, though their abdomens are much slimmer. Furthermore, the Carniolan bee has a very long tongue (6.5 to 6.7 mm, which is very well adapted for clover), a very high elbow joint and very short hair.

Character and behavior

Strengths *Gentle and non-aggressive *Can be kept in populated areas *Better sense of orientation relative to the Italian honey bee *Less drifting of bees from one hive to a neighboring hive *Not as prone to robbing from other hives relative to the Italian honey bee *Able to overwinter in smaller numbers of winter bees *Thrifty during Winter, conserving honey stores *Able to quickly adapt to changes in the environment *Good for areas with longer winters *Fast rhythm of brood production and then brood rearing reduction when available forage decreases *Lower use 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. Prop ...

*Increased resistance to brood diseases *Good build up for areas with strong spring nectar flow and early pollination *Forage earlier in the morning and later in the evening, and on cooler, wetter days *Workers live up to 12% longer than other sub-species

References

External links