Performance Evaluation of Local Honey Bee Races (Apismellifera Wayi Gambella) in Sheka Zone

Select Volume / Issue:

• Volume 4,Issue 6,Nov.,2017

Year:

2017

Type of Publication:

Article

Keywords:

Apis Mellifera Weyi Gambella, Behavior, Performance and South Western Ethiopia

Authors:

Aleme, Melkam; Yadessa, Endale; Tulu, Derje; Bogale, Ararsa; Mengistu, Gezahegn; Bezabeh, Amsalu

Journal:

IJRAS

Volume:

4

Number:

6

Pages:

282-287

Month:

November

ISSN:

2348-3997

Note:

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Creative Commons License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/

Abstract:

The study was conducted in Tepi National Spice Research Center from 2015 to 2017 on performance evaluation of Apis mellifera Weyi gambella honey bee races with the aim of the study were to determine and select the best performing honey bee races in terms of defensive, hygienic, absconding, foraging, swarming and higher on hive product area measurement parameters. A total of 21 colony were selected and situated on station and all relevant data was collected in appropriate season to issuer the accuracy of the result. The study reveled that the races were aggressive and made stings on the examiner (mean ± sd) maximum count up to 80 ± 5.09 and minimum to 19.54 ± 4.20 stings on the manipulator while the distance followed by them reaches long to 115 ± 26.59 to 72 ± 8.04 m away from the entrance. Absconding percentage from total twenty one colonies reaches maximum to 26% (July) and minimum 8% (April). Early and late foraging behavior of the colony was also recorded and early to 6:25 am for 15% of them and 50% were moves at 6:40 am for foraging. Whereas late foraging time fixes at 6:17 pm for 22% and 6:35 pm the rest 33% of the colony come back to their nest in the evening. Thus colony much enough to swarming and construct an average of 4.66 ± 4.72 (mean ± sd) swarm cell count. The rest hive products measured in 5x5 cm2 comb area cell during production season within 21 day interval for brood area. Those scored in mean ± sd recorded maximum to minimum for adult, brood, pollen, nectar, and honey area in cm2 were 94.39 ± 24.80 (December) - 37.79 ± 9.76 (June), 127.72 ± 34.05 (december, 2016) - 21.60 ± 24.13 (June, 2017), 63.38 ± 23.53 (November) - 2.16 ± 1.24 (April), 31.61 ± 17.50 (November) - 0.55 ± 0.61 (June), and 91.83 ± 21.67 (December) - 37.55 ± 19.60 (April) respectively. There was significant difference (p = 0.05) among season for all parameters. This indicates that the race was perform better towards swarming and hygienic above 90% to unpleasant condition this engaged to their resistance for pests like bee beetle and wax moth and disease caused by parasitic varroa and also predators however, hardly defend to show their aggressiveness behavior

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