Bob Said:

>  Apis florea builds the smallest cells of honey bees ( 1375
> cells/decimeter),Apis cerana  the second smallest ( 1243 cells/ decimeter)
> and then apis scutellata m.( 1000 cells/ decimeter).
>
> Quite a bit of honey is produced by cerana bees in China in modern hives.
> Over a million hives I have been told.
>
> I once suggested an introduction of cerana might be an answer to our
varroa
> problem years ago on BEE-L but my idea was put down by all!
>
> If a smaller bee is better 49'ers why not cerana?
>


I was aware of A. Cerana, but had always been told it was an "inferior"
producer.  After a couple of hours of  'net research, I found a wealth of
info on Cerana which may explain why it gets dissed by Westerners:

They seem to be highly variable, with the high altitude sub-species
(Kashmiri strain) being far better producers (very comparable to A.
Mellifera) than their lower altitude counterparts. The higher productivity
is accompanied by higher aggression (though this doesn't appear to be
excessive).  This variability extends to docility on the comb, and
swarming/absconding tendencies.  One trait that would not be favorable in
Langstroths is their hive organization.  It seems that they tend to mix
brood, pollen, and honey on the same comb, although that may be a first year
mechanism only.  On the positive side, they seem to be quite resistant to
all major pests and disease, although foulbrood has become something of an
issue in some regions.  They need little care, and are well suited to
Indian/Chinese methods of apiculture - often "leave alone" beekeeping.

So now I'm wondering - How does one legally obtain some A. Cerana to
experiment with?  Since the Kashmiri strain seems far superior to all
others, it would probably be best to find a direct source in India.  Is
there any way a humble hobby beekeeper can do this?

Todd.

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