Universal Journal of Environmental Research and Technology All Rights Reserved Euresian Publication © 2014 eISSN 2249 0256 Available Online at: www.environmentaljournal.org 2014 Volume 4, Issue 2: 63-71 Open Access Research Article 63 Kumar and Kumar Influence of Changing Cultural Practices on Nesting behaviour of Apis florea Fabricius Rajeev Kumar and Neelima R Kumar* Department of Zoology, Panjab University, Chandigarh (India)-160014 * Corresponding author: neelimark6@gmail.com Abstract: The dwarf honey bee Apis florea F. is generally found in areas with hot climate. In order to study the nesting behaviour of this species, investigations were carried out at altitude ranging from 365 to 1100 meter (m) above mean sea level. Survey was conducted during four seasons for complete three years surveying 4-6 villages in each region. It was observed that change in cultural practices by human society has led to overall decline in dwarf honey bee colonies in hilly areas. Plain areas were observed to be choice habitat for these bees. Important attracting factors for nesting were rich forage sources, bovine dung, uninterrupted agricultural practices, traditional animal husbandry, safe nesting site and less predator infestation in plains. Animal husbandry farms proved to be safe zone for colony habitation. Keywords: dwarf honey bees, A. florea, cultural practices, safe habitat, traditional animal husbandry, predators 1. Introduction: Honey bees are social insects that belong to the genus Apis (Hymenoptera: Apidae). These insects play pivotal role in nature and are beneficial to man in many respects. The genus Apis comprises mainly four species: Apis florea F. the dwarf honey bee; Apis dorsata F. the giant honey bee; Apis cerana F. the eastern honey bee and Apis mellifera L. the western honey bee. All the four species of honey bees are found in India. A. andreniformes S. is the counterpart species of A. florea F., A. koschevnikovi E is the sister species of A. cerana F. and A. laboriosa S. is the high altitude version of A. dorsata. These species are considered to be in advanced stage of speciation as they show greater physical variations than the other subspecies. The title dwarf honey bee is shared by two species of genus Apis, first species is A. florea F., the red dwarf honey bee and the second is A. andreniformes S. the black dwarf honey bee. Ruttner (1988) obtained three morphoclusters for A. florea: (1) S. India and Sri Lanka, (2) Thailand and (3) Oman, Pakistan and Iran. Mogga and Ruttner (1988) also reported three morphoclusters of A. florea. Based upon morphology A. andreniformes is the smallest honey bee and has recently been reconfirmed to be a separate species from the sympatric species, A. florea (Wu and Kuang, 1987). A. florea builds single comb, nests in the open and in low bushes. Like other tropical honeybees they are prone to migration, at times over considerable distances. These migrations may be seasonal or in some cases may be a defence against predators and parasites. Till date, this species is unsuitable for apicultural use although it makes considerable contribution in crop pollination, supply of honey and wax. Honey hunting is practiced with this bee species and usually involves destruction of the nest and brood. In some areas, however collection of honey is practiced without destruction of the nest, and some honey gatherers even provide nest sites to which they transfer the whole colony. A. florea is well known for its quality honey which is considered to be of medicinal value by farmers. The most comprehensive studies on biogeography and distributional databases for A. florea are those of Maa (1953), Ruttner (1988), Wongsiri et al. (1990), Rinderer et al. (2002), Tahmasebi et al. (2002), Hepburn et al. (2005), Hepburn (2006) and Hepburn and Radloff (2011). Mossadegh and Birjandi (1986), Mossadegh (1990) and Deowanish et al. (2001) reported that A. florea absconds in response to temperature and heat while in Iran Tirgari et al. (1969) and Tirgari (1971) observed that A. florea migrated to areas with maximum exposure to sun light in autumn and in spring returned to dense foliage with less exposure of sun to the comb.