* Ruttner (1988) classified both Italian subspecies, A. m. ligustica in continental Italy, and A. m. sicula in Sicily, within the north Mediterranean branch C, pointing that Apis mellifera ligustica bees across the entire Italian Peninsula were considered to be quite similar to A. m. carnica from which they differ essentially by the yellow color of their abdominal tergum.

* in north-eastern Italy, introgression of morphology and mitochondrial DNA markers has been reported between the Italian subspecies A. m. ligustica and neighboring A. m. carnica

* In 1877, the initial importations of the Carniolan honey bee (A. m. carnica) were made by Charles Dadant. Larger and more sustained importations of Carniolan honey bees were made by Frank Benton, who imported substantial numbers of queens into Canada and the U.S., starting in 1883.

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