Apis mellifera Linnaeus, 1758

Pauly, Alain & Hora, Zewdu Ararso, 1787, Apini and Meliponini from Ethiopia (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Apidae: Apinae), Belgian Journal of Entomology 16, pp. 1-35 : 25-26

Apis mellifera Linnaeus, 1758

(Figs 25-34)

Apis mellifera comprises a number of races or subspecies in Africa ( HEPBURN & RADLOFF, 1998), ten of them being recognized as valid by ENGEL (1999).

AMSSALU et al. (2004) have identified five statistically distinct morpho-clusters occupying different agro-ecologies in Ethiopia: Apis mellifera bandasii , A. m. jemenitica, A. m. monticola, A. m. scutellata and A. m. woyi-gambella (see also AMSSALU, 2002 and NURU, 2002).

MEIXNER et al. (2011) show on the basis of new morphometrical analyses that the Ethiopian honey bees are clearly distinct and statistically separable from honey bees belonging to neighbouring subspecies in eastern Africa. They report that considerable variation of morphological characters in relation to altitude is present in the samples analysed, but there are no statistically separable subgroups within Ethiopian honey bee populations. Their data suggest that these honey bees are not A. mellifera monticola from Kenya. They decided not to validate one of the names used in earlier publications for Ethiopian honey bees, “ A. mellifera bandasii ” (MOGGA, 1988) or “ A. mellifera woyi-gambella ” ( AMSSALU et al., 2004), because according to the rules of the I.C.Z.N., both these names have to be considered invalid. As already stated by ENGEL (1999), the name “ A. mellifera bandasii ” has been proposed in the M. Sc. thesis of MOGGA (1988), but was never published according to the rules of the I.C.Z.N. (1999). It is a nomen nudum. The name “ A. mellifera woyi-gambella ” was introduced by AMSSALU et al. (2004) to describe a small portion of the honey bee population of Ethiopia in the south-western corner of the country. It is lacking the designation of a holotype and a type locality; further, the name violates Art. 11.9.4 of the code and can therefore not be considered valid. To avoid further confusion, a new subspecies name for the honey bees of Ethiopia is introduced, A. mellifera simensis MEIXNER et al., 2011 .

GRUBER et al. (2013) have studied the genetic and morphological differentiation of mountain honey bees in Kenya. Their findings suggest that phenotypic plasticity rather than distinct ancestry is the leading cause behind the phenotypic divergence observed between montane forest black honey bees (A. m. monticola) and low land savanna honey bees (A. m. scutellata). Phenotypic plasticity is defined as the ability of a genotype to produce different phenotypes, depending on environmental conditions. Naturally occurring gene flow among honeybee populations in Kenya most likely contributes to the low genetic differentiation.

A strong positive correlation between dark pigmentation and high altitude has been reported in several insect groups. Two of the key differences between montane and lowland honeybee populations are their coloration and size. On the high plates of Ethiopia the honey bees are of relatively large size and mostly black (Fig. 25a), but some red specimens also occur (Fig. 25b). In semi-arid lowlands bees are mostly red and of small size (Figs. 26a,b,c). Specimens identified as “ woyi-gambella ” by AMSSALU et al. (2004) in south western semi-arid to sub-humid lowland parts of the country are the smallest and mostly red, but some dark specimens also occur (Fig. 25e). Further studies should probably reveal a clinal transition between Apis populations in the highplates of Ethiopia named “ simensis ” and other populations of honey bees in the neighbouring countries named “ jemenitica ” and “ scutellata ”. The honey bees from the coast of the Red Sea and from the Afar are probably more closely related to the populations of A. m. jemenitica from Arabia and Yemen as defined by AL-GHAMDI et al. (2012, 2013).

a - A. m. simensis, black (Holeta, 2450m)

c - A. m. simensis (Mt Simien, 3500m) b - A. m. simensis, red (Holeta, 2450m)

d - A. m. monticola ( Kenya, Mt Elgon)