Apis Dorsata Research Articles

The first ITS2 sequence data set of eDNA from honey of Malaysian giant honeybees (Apis dorsata) and stingless bees (Heterotrigona itama) reveals plant species diversity

ObjectivesPollen is a useful tool for identifying the provenance and complex ecosystems surrounding honey production in Malaysian forests. As native key pollinators in Malaysia, Apis dorsata and Heterotrigona itama forage on various plant/pollen species to collect honey. This study aims to generate a dataset that uncovers the presence of these plant/pollen species and their relative abundance in the honey of A. dorsata and H. itama. The information gathered from this study can be used to determine the geographical and botanical origin and authenticity of the honey produced by these two species.ResultsSequence data were obtained for both A. dorsata and H. itama. The raw sequence data for A. dorsata was 5 Mb, which was assembled into 5 contigs with a size of 6,098,728 bp, an N50 of 15,534, and a GC average of 57.42. Similarly, the raw sequence data for H. itama was 6.3 Mb, which was assembled into 11 contigs with a size of 7,642,048 bp, an N50 of 17,180, and a GC average of 55.38. In the honey sample of A. dorsata, we identified five different plant/pollen species, with only one of the five species exhibiting a relative abundance of less than 1%. For H. itama, we identified seven different plant/pollen species, with only three of the species exhibiting a relative abundance of less than 1%. All of the identified plant species were native to Peninsular Malaysia, especially the East Coast area of Terengganu.Data descriptionOur data offers valuable insights into honey’s geographical and botanical origin and authenticity. Metagenomic studies could help identify the plant species that honeybees forage and provide preliminary data for researchers studying the biological development of A. dorsata and H. itama. The identification of various flowers from the eDNA of honey that are known for their medicinal properties could aid in regional honey with accurate product origin labeling, which is crucial for guaranteeing product authenticity to consumers.

Pollination Ecology of Rocket (Eruca vesicaria (L.) Cav. ssp. sativa (Mill.) Thell) in the Semi-Arid Environments of Northwest India: Native Bees Are the Major Pollinators

Several insect species visit the flowers of a plant to obtain floral rewards in the form of pollen and/or nectar. In return, we would anticipate that those visitors would contribute to the reproductive success of the plant. Do these visitors contribute equally towards the reproductive success of the plant? This issue has been the interest of many pollination ecologists. To find a solution to this problem, I investigated the pollination ecology of rocket (Eruca vesicaria (L.) Cav. ssp. sativa (Mill.) Thell), an important leafy vegetable used as salad. I captured the flower visitors with a hand net from the experimental field and had these identified. I also recorded the number of loose pollen grains carried on the body of the visitors of different species and deposited on the stigmas. Effects of single and multiple visits of visitors on the seed set of rocket flowers were also determined. Abundances and foraging rates of the flower visitors of this species were recorded and their values were used to calculate their respective contributions towards the reproductive success of this species. Five species of Hymenoptera, three of Diptera, one of Lepidoptera, and one of Coleoptera visited the flowers of the rocket. Apis florea was the most abundant among the flower visitors, followed by the dipterous flies, Apis mellifera, Apis dorsata, Andrena savignyi, and Andrena leaena in descending order. The number of loose pollen grains carried and deposited, foraging behaviors, foraging rates, and abundances did not provide conclusive measures to differentiate the contributions of different flower visitors towards the reproductive success of the rocket. However, the data recorded on abundances, foraging behaviors, and foraging rates together could do so. Accordingly, Andrena savignyi was the most efficient pollinator of rocket, followed by Andrena leaena, Apis dorsata, Apis mellifera, and Apis florea; dipterous flies were the least efficient pollinators of this plant species. In rocket, 28.84% of pollination was brought by Andrena savignyi, 24.69% by Andrena leaena, 20.34% by Apis dorsata, 18.37% by Apis mellifera, and 7.7% by Apis florea; dipterous flies caused only 0.06% pollination. Butterflies were very rare and Coccinella sp. was not a pollinator of this plant. Therefore, not all the pollinators of rocket contributed equally towards its reproductive success (seed production). Bees brought about 99.94% of total pollination and melittophily distinctly predominated over other pollination modes. However, among the bees, native bees together are the major pollinators in the flowers of rockets and accomplished more than 81.5% pollination. Therefore, the conservation of native bees is most important for the pollination of crops such as rockets.

Effect of Honey Bee <i>Apis mellifera</i> L. Pollination on Oilseed Rape

An experiment was conducted to survey insect visitors and the effect of different modes of pollination on quantity of oilseed rape. Survey revealed that a wide range of insect species, including honey bees, and hover flies, house fly and ensign fly were frequent on oilseed rape flowers where honey bees (Apis dorsata and Apis mellifera) were dominant. Effect of pollination revealed that in bee pollinated (BP) plants the number of pods/ plant, number of seeds/ pod, weight of 1000 seeds (g) and yield/ ha were 16.38, 20.18, 6.75 and 14.27% higher than open/naturally pollinated (NP) plants, respectively. Without (WP) pollinators the number of pods/ plant, number of seeds/ pod, weight of 1000 seeds (g) and yield/ ha were the 19.38, 37.05, 8.10 and 32.63% lower than naturally pollinated (NP) plants, respectively. Bee pollination is the most effective and cheaper device for seed production in rapeseed and mustard.

SEASONAL TROPHIC NICHE BREADTH AND OVERLAP IN A GUILD OF SIX MOST FREQUENT BEE SPECIES IN BAHAWALPUR, PAKISTAN

Agonistic relationships in plant-pollinator assemblages are poorly understood as compared to mutualistic relationships. We estimated the floral resource competition in terms of seasonal trophic niche breadth and overlap among the guild of six most frequent bee species i.e., Ceratina smaragdula, Lasioglossum sp., Ceylalictus sp., Halictus sp., Apis dorsata and Apis florea in Bahawalpur (Punjab), Pakistan. The species exhibiting the maximum niche breadth had the minimum abundance in spring and summer seasons. The niche breadth of two solitary bees i.e., Lasioglossum sp. and C. smaragdula was higher than the social A. florae but they were much less abundant. Ceratina smaragdula showed the maximum pair-wise niche overlap with A. florea and Halictus sp. in spring and with Ceylalictus sp. in summer. Apis florea and A. dorsata had the maximum pair-wise niche overlap in both the autumn and winter seasons. No significant pair-wise niche overlap and interspecific competition was observed among all the six species in any season. This shows that pollination system in arid Bahawalpur is stable and less prone to competition and species loss.

IDENTIFICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF FEED PLANTS FOR Apis dorsata Binghami IN THE PINABETENGAN FOREST, MINAHASA

Apis Dorsata Binghami is a honey bee that is often found in the forest, which is conserved by the community, but there are also honey bees that are just left alone; the community preserves these honey bees because their honey can be traded and can also be used as medicine. This study aims to determine the plants that are a feed source for Apis Dorsata Binghami in the Pinabetengan Forest, Minahasa Regency. This research was conducted in June-August 2022. The data collected came from field survey data using descriptive methods and identified plant species with values of Reactive Density (KR), Relative Frequency (FR), Relative Dominance (DR), and Index Significant Value (INP). Plant diversity as a food source for Apis Dorsata Binghami has different types of plants based on their habitus or the characteristics of the plants themselves.

Identification and Antimicrobial Activity of Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated from Tualang Bee Honey

Malaysia tualang honey usually collected from the combs of Asia rock bees (Apis dorsata), which build their hives high up in the tualang tree (Koompassia excelsa). Tualang honey is used commonly as a medicinal product and as food in Malaysia. LAB strains have been discovered to exhibit antimicrobial properties even though especially in Malaysia, the research on LAB found from honey are still scarce. The study was conducted to isolate and identify lactic acid bacteria (LAB) from Tualang honey bee from East Coast Peninsular Malaysia. The Tualang honey identified LAB strains were further tested against several pathogenic bacteria by using well-diffusion method. The LAB were primarily identified by colony morphology, microscopy of Gram`s stain, biochemical tests and 16s rRNA sequencing method. 10 isolates LAB that has been identified as Leuconostoc mesenteroides (5 isolates), Lactobacillus kunkeei (4 isolates), and Lactobacillus farraginis (1 isolates) were selected for the characterization of antimicrobial agents produced by LAB. It was found that from 10 isolates, 5 isolates exhibited strong antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus epidermidis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa results in excellent inhibition zones diameters larger than 15 mm. This study indicated that lactic acid bacteria isolated from Tualang honey has potential antimicrobial activity against pathogenic bacteria and can be further characterized for health benefits and potential use in food industry at Malaysia.
 Keywords: Tualang Honey, LAB, pathogen, 16s rRNA sequencing, antimicrobial activity.

Sebaran dan Karakter Morfologi Lebah Madu Hutan Apis dorsata (F.) di Pulau Sermata Kabupaten Maluku Barat Daya

This study aims to determine the distribution and morphological characteristics of the forest bee (Apis dorsata F.) on Sermata Island, Southwest Maluku Regency. The research was conducted in Pupliora Village, Mahaleta Village, Rumkisar Village and Batu Gajah Village on Sermata Island from November to December 2021. The method used in this study was a survey methode on each nest of A. dorsata [F.] forest honeybees on Sermata Island. The results showed that the distribution of Apis dorsata F. forest honey bee hives found on Sermata Island was 51 active nest colonies and 37 inactive nests, at an altitude of 38-215 m asl, with nesting sites found, namely mango trees, breadfruit trees, banyan trees, salawaku trees and rock cliffs. For heights from the ground surface ranging from 4-29 m. The average size of the morphometric characters of Apis dorsata worker bees found was body length 2.0-2.2 cm, head width 0.4-0.5 cm, body length 2.0-2.2 cm, head width 0.4-0.5 cm, head 0.4-0.6 cm. Front wing length 1.3-1.4. The size of the hind wings is 0.9 cm, and the length of the hind legs is 1.1-1.2 cm.

The potential of Sumbawa honey (Apis dorsata) as a natural antioxidant

The potential of Sumbawa honey (Apis dorsata) as a natural antioxidant

Molecular Characterization of Pollinators in Cotton Ecosystem

DNA barcoding using cytochrome c oxidase I (mtCO1) for molecular characterization is a taxonomic method that uses a short genetic marker in an insect DNA to identify a species, including an unknown species. The coming-to-light of this identification tool is timely when we are facing perhaps the greatest rate of species loss in recent millennia. This study contributes to increasing the number of published accounts of DNA barcoding and accurately distinguishing the pollinator fauna of cotton in Punjab, India. The mtCOI region of all the samples was amplified, cloned and the nucleotide sequences were determined and analyzed. This study reveals that specimens collected in cotton belong to order Hymenoptera and Diptera. Hymenopterans include Apis dorsata, Apis florea, Xylocopa fenestrata, Sceliphron madraspatanum and Polistes wattii. Dipterns include Eristalinus quinquelineatus and Musca convexifrons.

Floral development and potential pollinators of Syzygium myhendrae (Bedd. ex Brandis) Gamble, a wild endemic tree of the Southern Western Ghats, India

Syzygium myhendrae, is a semi-evergreen, endemic and endangered tree species of the Southern Western Ghats, India which exhibits bi-annual mode of flowering and fruiting behaviour. This research is specifically aimed to observe the sequence of morphological processes occurring during floral development and to identify the potential pollinators from the different floral visitors. These aims are achieved by examining the individual trees of candidate species during their flowering season. Sticky traps, bee bowls, sweep nets and pan traps were used to capture floral visitors at the anthesis stage. Visitation frequency and visitor activity index were calculated to distinguish effective pollinators from visitor insects. The results showed nine stages in flower development starting from flower bud emergence to fruit ripening, which took 6-9 weeks. Nine species of insects were recorded as visitors. Honey bees (Apis cerana, ApisMdorsata and Tetragonula iridipennis), butterflies (Hypolimnas misippus,pachilopta pandiana), wasp species, beetle species, fly species were exclusively visiting the flowers of the candidate species. Among the honey bees, Apis dorsata showed high visitation frequency (0.40±0.01) followed by Apis cerana (0.31±0.02) and Tetragonula iridipennis (052±0.02). As per the visitation frequency, it can be concluded that Apis dorsata was the most frequent and effective pollinator.

Dim-light colour vision in the facultatively nocturnal Asian giant honeybee, Apis dorsata.

We discovered nocturnal colour vision in the Asian giant honeybee Apis dorsata-a facultatively nocturnal species-at mesopic light intensities, down to half-moon light levels (approx. 10-2 cd m-2). The visual threshold of nocturnality aligns with their reported nocturnal activity down to the same light levels. Nocturnal colour vision in A. dorsata is interesting because, despite being primarily diurnal, its colour vision capabilities extend into dim light, while the 'model' European honeybee Apis mellifera is reported to be colour-blind at twilight. By employing behavioural experiments with naturally nesting A. dorsata colonies, we show discrimination of the trained colour from other stimuli during the day, and significantly, even at night. Nocturnal colour vision in bees has so far only been reported in the obligately nocturnal carpenter bee Xylocopa tranquebarica. The discovery of colour vision in these two bee species, despite differences in the extent of their nocturnality and the limitations of their apposition compound eye optics, opens avenues for future studies on visual adaptations for dim-light colour vision, their role in pollination of flowers at night, and the effect of light pollution on nocturnal activity in A. dorsata, a ubiquitous pollinator in natural, agricultural and urban habitats in the Asian tropics and sub-tropics.

Total Phenolics, Flavonoids, and Antioxidant Activities of Indonesian Apis Dorsata Honey Due to Heating

Honey is rich in phenolic and flavonoid compounds that have the potential as antioxidants. The heating treatment of honey is also known to affect the honey compound. This study aimed to determine the best Indonesian A. dorsata honey from various locations based on the level of total phenolics compounds, flavonoids, and antioxidant capacity due to variations in heating temperature. The procedures carried out in this study included: heating the sample with variations (room temperature, 65 oC, and 121 oC), measuring total phenolic content using the Folin-Ciocalteau method, measuring total flavonoid content using the AlCl3 colorimetric method, and testing antioxidant activity using the DPPH method. Each honey's total phenolic, flavonoid, and antioxidant activity are affected by its origin. The impact of heating at 65 oC and 121 oC resulted in various changes between honey samples (p<0.05). The best A. dorsata honey overall was found in Flores honey after heating at 121 oC heating treatment with total phenolic content of 4.96 mgGAE/mL, total flavonoids of 1.173 mg QE/mL, and IC50 5.76 g/L.

In Vitro Antidiabetic Activity and Bioactive Ingredients of Apis mellifera and Apis dorsata Binghami Nest Extracts

Indonesia ranks 7th out of ten countries with diabetes mellitus, which continues to increase yearly. Honeycomb is rich in secondary metabolites formed from plant resins (propolis) which contain alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, tannins, steroids and triterpenes. The research aimed to analyze the comparison of flavonoid content and antidiabetic activity with the enzyme α-glucosidase In Vitro nest extract of A. mellifera and A. dorsata Binghami. The samples used were nests of A. mellifera from northern Toraja, southern Sulawesi and A. dorsata Binghami from Southeast Minahasa, North Sulawesi. Using 96% ethanol, HPLC method of flavonoid testing and in vitro antidiabetic activity testing using α-glucosidase enzymes. The flavonoid content results were based on the number of peaks produced and the retention time of A. mellifera produced 26 compounds, and A. dorsata Bingham produced 21 compounds. The results of in vitro antidiabetic tests with α-glucoside enzyme inhibitors obtained IC50 values from the nest extract of A. mellifera of 3.605 mg/L and the nest extract of A. dorsata Binghami of 4.992 mg/L. The extract from A. mellifera had better antidiabetic potential than that of A. dorsata Binghami, although the difference is insignificant.

ANALISIS PENGARUH SUHU TERHADAP WARNA, DENSITAS, DAN VISKOSITAS MADU HUTAN LEBAH Apis dorsata DARI KECAMATAN LUNYUK-SUMBAWA

Sumbawa is one of the regions in Indonesia which is famous as a producer of forest honey produced by Apis dorsata bees. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of temperature on the color, density, and viscosity of Apis dorsata bee forest honey originating from Lunyuk District, Sumbawa. This study used a completely randomized design (CRD) with temperature as a treatment factor. The results of the research show that temperature has a significant effect on the color, density, and viscosity of forest honey harvested around September 2021 at the beginning of the rainy season in the harvest area and its surroundings. Color testing using a calorimeter that produces a value of L*> 50 or light colored in various temperature treatments, namely 5oC, 26oC, and 35oC. Meanwhile, the density test showed the highest value, namely 1.48 g/m3 when the honey was at 5oC. Then, the highest viscosity value is 1.38 poise which also occurs when honey is at a temperature of 5oC. This shows that the best temperature for honey storage is 5oC compared to other temperature treatments.

The presence of identical deformed wing virus sequence variants in co-occurring Apis species in Northern Thailand may represent a potential epidemiological threat to native honey bees of Southeast Asia

Widespread native honey bee species in South and East Asia (Apis cerana, Apis dorsata and Apis florea) and the imported western honey bee (Apis mellifera) share habitats and potentially also share pathogens. Chief among the threats facing A. mellifera in Europe and North America is deformed wing virus (DWV), including its two principal genotypes: A and B (DWV-A and DWV-B respectively). Though DWV-A has been recorded in Asia’s native Apis species, it is not known if DWV-B, or both DWV-A and DWV-B, are currently widespread in Asia and, if so, whether viral transmission is primarily intraspecific or interspecific. This study aims to fill these knowledge gaps by (i) determining the DWV genotype in four co-occurring Apis host species using qPCR and (ii) inferring viral transmission between them using nucleotide sequences of DWV from Apis host species collected at three independent localities in Northern Thailand. We found DWV-A and -B in all four Apis species, the exotic A. mellifera and the native A. cerana, A. dorsata and A. florea. That DWV-A sequences were identical across Apis species at the same locality, with a similar pattern for DWV-B sequences, suggests that DWV’s epidemiology is largely driven by ongoing interspecific transmission (spillover) of DWV across co-occurring native and exotic Apis species. Both genotypes of DWV represent a serious threat to Asia’s exotic and native honey bee species.

Bio-chemical analysis of honey made by three, Apis florea, Apis mellifera and Apis dorsata’s honeybee species from Punjab region

Bio-chemical analysis of honey made by three, Apis florea, Apis mellifera and Apis dorsata’s honeybee species from Punjab region

Honey Purity Analysis of Trigona sp. species in Royal Honey Sakah, Bali

Honey is a sweet liquid produced by bees and derived from the nectar of flowers. The increasing circulation of fake honey has alarmed the public. An analysis of the purity of honey still needs to be reported. This study aimed to analyze the purity of honey from Trigona sp. at Royal Honey Sakah. The qualitative design was used during the study in May 2022 at Royal Honey Sakah. Three honey samples from different bees were analyzed to determine how much water, sugar, and viscosity they had. Our findings show that the purity of honey depends on moisture content, sugar content, and viscosity and that these three parameters depend on the quality of nectar produced from flower plants around the place of cultivation. The purity level in sugar, water, and viscosity content in three types of honey, including Apis dorsata honey, wild forest honey (Tetragonula biroi), and tenganan local honey (Apis sp.), all meet the quality requirements of honey according to SNI 8664: 2018. Therefore, the higher the sugar concentration, the less water there is in the honey, and the higher the viscosity, the more pure or authentic the honey is. People who will consume honey are expected to be able to identify the quality of honey in terms of its viscous structure, no bubbles resembling heated sugar, and a dark brown or concentrated color. Honey is declared pure if there is no further processing other than filtering from the source.

ABUNDANCE OF INSECT POLLINATORS IN A MUSTARD FIELD AT DINAJPUR IN BANGLADESH

The study was conducted in the farmer’s mustard field near the campus of Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University, Dinajpur-5200, Bangladesh from November 2020 to March 2021 to identify the insects involved in pollination of mustard and to know their relative abundance. A total number of 24 pollinator insects belonging to 15 families (Apidae, Andrenidae, Halictidae, Scoliidae, Tenthredinidae, Muscidae, Calliphoridae, Rhiniidae, Syrphidae, Arctiide, Crambidae, Nymphalidae, Pieridae, Plutellidae and Coccinellidae) and 4 orders (Hymenoptera, Diptera, Lepidoptera and Coleoptera) were observed associated with mustard (Brassica rapa) crop on BARI Sarisha-17. Among the orders, the Hymenoptera, Diptera, Lepidoptera and Coleoptera were found as 49.8%, 42.0%, 7.4% and 0.6%, respectively. However, Hymenopterans insects were evident the pre-dominant floral visitors. Indian honey bee, Apis cerana showed the highest abundance (23.2%) followed by Rock bee, Apis dorsata (13.8%), Rhiniid blowfly, Stomorhina sp. (10.5%).

Comparison of the comb cell structure of Apis dorsata (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in two areas of China

The comb cell structure of Apis dorsata in different ecoregions is rarely reported. This study compared the differences in the comb cell structure of Apis dorsata from Menghai of Yunnan Province and Chengmai of Hainan Province, China. Accordingly, parameters such as brood comb thickness, the width of ten consecutive brood cells, cell diameter, depth, inclination angle, and the side length of the cell mouth were measured. The results showed that within the same area, the widths of ten consecutive cells and single-cell diameter in the 0° direction were significantly bigger than that in the 60° and 120° directions, however, there was no significant difference for the same between the 60° and 120° directions. The average width of ten consecutive cells and the single-cell diameter showed significant differences between the two areas. These were significantly bigger in Menghai than in Chengmai. The average thickness of the brood comb, cell depth, and side length of the cell mouth were also significantly higher in Menghai than in Chengmai, however, the cell inclination angle showed no regional difference. These differences in the comb cell structure of Apis dorsata may be due to the difference in the ecological environment of the two areas. This study revealed the structural characteristics of the comb cells of Apis dorsata in different areas of China, increasing our biological knowledge of this bee species.

Choice of forage plants by the giant honey bee Apis laboriosa Smith in a captive condition outside their native geographic range

The giant honey bee, Apis laboriosa, is native to the central and eastern Himalayas, Hengduan, Arakan, Annamite and adjoining mountain ranges of Southeast Asia. The present work documented forage plants of A. laboriosa in a captive condition outside its natural geographic range for 09 months and tested their choice based on the abundance of the forager bees on flowers. The study was conducted by introducing a combless colony of A. laboriosa in a climate control greenhouse. A total of 68 plant species of 34 families were offered, out of which the foragers accepted the floral rewards from 28 species of 20 plant families. The foragers collected pollens and nectar from 10 and 18 plant species, respectively. A maximum number of foragers visited Mesua ferrea for pollen (16.94 ± 1.25 foragers/flower/hour) and Indigofera sp. for nectar (9.60 ± 1.24 foragers/flower/hour). Tukey’s Multiple Comparison test showed significant variation in the abundance of foragers on some plants. Analysis of variance showed no significant difference in the number of foragers at different time intervals of a day except for the nectar plants Cucumis sativus and Indigofera sp. The study also showed that the choice of the foragers was not associated with floral colours and plant family, but possibly dependent on some common cues of the forage plants resulting from convergent evolution. Foraging from plants of low altitudes also indicated that they can forage from plants outside their native geographic range.