RESEARCH: Plan Bee – Honey Bee research in Australia

Plan Bee is a national genetic improvement program for bees. It uses innovative breeding technologies to transform the performance of Honey Bees in Australia.

Dr. Nadine Chapman from the University of Sydney is Plan Bee’s lead researcher. The BEE molecular laboratory and bee house at the university actually stands for Behaviour, Ecology, and Evolution.

Continue reading “RESEARCH: Plan Bee – Honey Bee research in Australia”

Fallacy: All Bees Live in Hives

A fallacy is something that is not true.

All bees live in hives is a fallacy.

Do all bees live in hives? No, not all bees live in hives. There are social bees and solitary bees.

A colony of bees—many thousands of bees—are social bees that live together in a hive. The Bumblebee and the Honeybee (or Honey Bee) are social bees, living in colonies, and living in hives.

However, solitary bees do not live in hives. 

Most bee species are, in fact, solitary bees.

Continue reading “Fallacy: All Bees Live in Hives”

European Dark Bee

The European Dark Bee (Apis mellifera mellifera) is an insect and a sub-species of the Western Honeybee, also called the European Honeybee (Apis mellifera). It is also known as the German Black Bee or the German Dark Bee.  

The European Dark Bee has a head, thorax (chest), and abdomen (stomach) with a stinger. It has a brown-black abdomen with a few lighter spots on its abdomen. Its wings are transparent. It has six legs, and large eyes.

Continue reading “European Dark Bee”

Italian Honey Bee

The Italian Honey Bee (Apis mellifera ligustica) is a small insect. It is also known as the Italian Bee or the Ligurian Bee. It is a sub-species of the European Honey Bee (Apis mellifera), which is also called the Western Honey Bee. It is a pollinator because it collects pollen from flowers.

The Italian Honey Bee has a head, thorax (chest), and abdomen with a stinger. It has a brown abdomen with yellow bands. Its wings are transparent. It has six legs, and large eyes.

Continue reading “Italian Honey Bee”