Species of bees (Apoidea) there is simply a huge number. Only in the European part of the former USSR there are more than a thousand of them. But, of course, only one species is of interest to humans - the honey bee (Apis mellifera).
The most productive insects were selected and people have bred them since ancient times. The result was the emergence of a large number of different breeds of honey bees. It is advisable to breed each of them in a certain area with appropriate climatic conditions.
A bit of history: the very first breeds of bees and their characteristics
The homeland of these hymenopteran insects is considered to be the Middle East, Europe and Africa. On the resettlement of bees in other parts of the world, man practically had no effect. The determining factors were primarily such factors as climate change, fauna and flora. As a result of evolutionary selection, over time, naturally, several primitive bee breeds have emerged. Modern beekeepers call them races. Each such group served as the starting point for creating the most productive domesticated breeds. “Attachment” to this particular locality is what insects such as bees are primarily characterized by. Breeds, reviews of which are the best, are usually zoned. In most cases, even the name of the variety comes precisely from the area in which it was bred. Being transported, any factory family is likely to lose in productivity.
What breeds are bred in Russia
In our country, beekeeping has also been practiced since ancient times. And consequently, there are many varieties of "toilers" bred in apiaries. Here are the most popular bee breeds in Russia:
mountain Caucasian;
Krai
backfast;
Carpathian;
Ukrainian;
steppe;
Central Russian.
Representatives of all these species are very productive and prolific bees. Bee breeds can vary in different ways. For which, and consider further.
What are the characteristics of one breed from another?
Actually, bees are called insects of the family Hymenoptera with a sharp sting and a golden abdomen covered with black stripes. In this case, one breed from another can be distinguished by the following characteristics:
proboscis length;
weight and size;
coloring features;
spitefulness;
loyalty;
disease resistance.
Central Russian bee: general description
This breed is bred everywhere in Russia. It is also popular in Siberia. Colonel N.F. Arshenevsky brought her here in 1792 from Bashkiria. After that, such bees were gradually resettled throughout Siberia. Over the past centuries, the appearance of the Bashkir variety has not changed at all. The Central Russian breed of bees has the following characteristic features:
proboscis 5.9-6.4 mm long;
very large sizes (a one-day bee weighs about 110 g);
dark coloration - from black to deep gray, without yellowness;
quick response to external stimuli and viciousness;
tendency to swarm;
disease resistance and endurance.
The advantages of the Central Russian bee
To date, this breed is considered the most productive in our country. During the flight, the Central Russian bee can bring just a huge amount of honey. This breed, for example, owns a record fee from fireweed - 328 kg per year from the family.
The ability to endure a 7-8 month winter-free wintering season is absolutely painless is another advantage that distinguishes these bees. Bee breeds, as already mentioned, rarely migrate independently. This does not apply to Central Russian. This is one of the rare species that can spread over large areas without human intervention.
Unfortunately, today the beekeepers do not pay too much attention to the Central Russian bee. And completely in vain. This is actually the best breed of bees in Russia. Its high productivity, insensitivity to diseases, endurance - all this can make an apiary much more profitable than when breeding southern varieties.
Ukrainian steppe: description
How exactly this breed appeared is still unknown to anyone. Some researchers believe that the Ukrainian steppe bee is just the southern branch of Central Russian. Others suggest that she is a relative of the Carpathian or extreme. But be that as it may, the Ukrainian steppe is so much different from any other bee species, both in appearance and in behavior, that can easily be distinguished into a separate breed. Which was done in 1929 by the scientist A. S. Skorikov.
The main distinguishing features of the Ukrainian steppe are:
proboscis 6.34-6.64 cm long;
quite a lot of weight (105 g);
dark gray color without yellowness;
not too high degree of viciousness;
low tendency to swarm;
disease resistance and insensitivity to low temperatures.
Advantages and disadvantages of the Ukrainian steppe bee
The advantages of this breed, in addition to endurance, include high productivity and activity in protecting their nests from theft of honey by other insects. Fertility, an easy way out of the pre-breeding state, and a tendency to maintain perfect cleanliness in the hive are what distinguish Ukrainian steppe bees. Bee breeds are also distinguished by honey collection conditions. The Ukrainian steppe in this regard is inferior to some other varieties. Its disadvantages include primarily the fact that it is able to collect nectar only from plants with a high sugar content (from 18%).
Carpathian bee: signs of the breed
This variety is also characterized by a whole complex of valuable economic and biological characteristics. Her systematic research began in 1966 at the initiative of a professor of the Agricultural Academy named after Timiryazev G.A. Avtisyan. The Carpathian bee breed is characterized by the following main features:
very long proboscis 6.3-7 m;
large sizes (up to 110 g);
gray abdomen;
peacefulness;
not too high aptitude for swarming;
relative resistance to disease and insensitivity to low temperatures.
Carpathian bees at an earlier age than other breeds begin to collect nectar. These insects print honey in a "dry" way.
Some time ago, beekeepers-breeders bred a special breed type of Carpathian bee - Moscow. The mass of one-day individuals of this group can reach 120 g. The bee breed in Moscow has a light silver color.
Advantages and disadvantages of the Carpathian breed
The advantages of bees living in the foothills of the Carpathians include high productivity, endurance and a peace-loving character. Unlike many others, this breed is able to collect a large amount of honey even from plants with a low sugar content. The disadvantages of this bee are a tendency to theft, reduced production of propolis and an indifferent attitude to wax moths. Nevertheless, due to its high productivity, Carpathian and Moscow are very popular bee breeds in Russia.
Krajn bees
This species formed in the foothills of the Alps. It was from her that the Carpathian bee later went. In its climatic zones, this breed is of particular economic value. Its main distinguishing features are:
not too long proboscis (6.9 mm);
quite a lot of weight (up to 110 g);
gray with a silver tint, black or brownish color of the abdomen;
peaceful character;
quite a high tendency to swarm;
winter hardiness and disease resistance.
Among other things, the breed is characterized by early spring development. These bees are capable of collecting nectar at an altitude of up to 1500 meters above sea level.
Pros and Cons of the Krai Bee
The advantages of this breed include high activity on strong honey collection, the ability to quickly switch from the worst plants to the best, adaptability to harsh weather conditions, economical consumption of feed supplies in winter. The main disadvantage of the Carpathian breed, in addition to the tendency to swarm, is considered a weak protection of the nest from theft.
Features of the breed fast food
The bee breeds described above can be bred in almost any region of the country. Buckfast is a productive variety, but not too frost-resistant. Therefore, it is suitable for breeding mainly only in southern climatic zones. This hybrid was bred in the 20s of the last century by the monk Karl Kerchle by crossing the Italian, Anatolian, Macedonian, Egyptian and Greek breeds. The main distinguishing features of the bee fast food are:
proboscis of medium length;
big weight (115 g);
uniform tan;
peacefulness;
average tendency to swarm;
resistance to diseases (especially acarapidosis) and sensitivity to low temperatures.
Bees of this breed very well clean the hives from debris and can fly for a bribe over long distances.
Advantages and disadvantages
Of all the West European bee species, buckfast is the most productive. In addition, these bees are characterized by fertility and high adaptability to changing environmental conditions. The disadvantages are primarily attributed to a low degree of winter hardiness. When breeding in the northern regions of Russia, hives for these bees should be insulated.
Mountain Caucasian bee: main characteristics
What breeds of bees are still breeding in the south of our country? Mountain Caucasian lives mainly in the mountains of Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. In our country, it is bred in the Krasnodar and Stavropol Territories. Its main distinguishing features are:
proboscis 6.7-7.25 mm long;
not too much body weight (up to 90 g);
silver-gray color of chitin without yellow inclusions;
slight tendency to swarm;
not too high resistance to disease, insensitive to frost.
Bees of this breed really do not like dampness. Therefore, in the hives you need to arrange good ventilation. In the cold season, this species of bees can be kept not only in winter roads, but also in the wild.
Pros and cons of gray Caucasian breed
The advantages of this variety of bees are primarily attributed to the ability to collect large amounts of honey even from plants containing little sugar. The gain in the hive can be up to 1.5 kg per day. Also, the Caucasian gray breed is considered a plus by the good ability of families to protect nests and a high yield of propolis.
The disadvantages of this species of bees are primarily not very good disease resistance. For such bee families in hives, you should create the most comfortable conditions. Compared with the Ukrainian steppe and Central Russian, this breed does not tolerate low temperatures so well. Therefore, it is suitable to a large extent for breeding only in the southern regions of the country. Also, these bees somewhat lose to other varieties in terms of the yield of honey on high bribes.
The main beekeeping products
The main advantage of all the breeds described above is, of course, high productivity. What is meant by this concept? The main products of beekeeping are honey, wax and propolis. In addition, these insects are bred in apiaries in order to obtain very valuable royal jelly, bee bread and bee venom.
Honey properties
This main beekeeping product has a rather complex chemical composition. Honey has healing, bactericidal and dietary properties. Its characteristics depend on many factors: bee breed, plant species, weather conditions, etc. Depending on this, honey can have different water content, chemical composition, color, degree of crystallization, etc.
There are several types of this product:
very thin (clover, acacia);
liquid (buckwheat, linden);
thick (dandelion);
sticky (mortar);
gelatinous (heather).
Honey is used in the food industry, cosmetology, medicine. It is added to cakes and pastries, anti-aging creams, gels and shampoos are made with its use. In medicine, this product is mainly used as a strengthening immunity and anti-inflammatory agent. Among other things, honey is also a natural antibiotic.
Beeswax value
This product in the hive performs two functions at once: it protects bees from moisture, covering their chitinous shell, and serves as material for building honeycombs. Like honey, beeswax can have different colors and composition. This valuable product is used in many areas of the economy: leather industry, light industry, food industry, and even in metallurgy and aircraft manufacturing. One of the main areas of its application is medicine. Wax is used in the treatment of skin diseases, as a wound healing and anti-inflammatory agent.
What is propolis?
This is another product obtained by breeding valuable insects such as bees. Bee breeds are numerous and they all produce beneficial propolis. They call it a special sticky substance of a dark color. Bees use it to seal cracks in the hive. The color and smell of this substance depend primarily on which honey plants grew in the immediate vicinity of the apiary. Propolis can be brown or black. All sorts of useful substances - vitamins, amino acids and trace elements - this product contains just a huge amount.
The most widely used bee glue found in medicine. With its help, eczema and other skin diseases, gastritis, peptic ulcer, colitis, etc. are treated.
Royal jelly
This is perhaps the most valuable beekeeping product. Milk insects are used to feed uterine larvae at all stages of development. It is a very powerful biological stimulant, consisting of a huge number of components. By consistency, royal jelly resembles sour cream and has a white color.
These beekeeping products are useful mainly because they can significantly increase human immunity. Milk is also used to treat diseases of the nervous system, infertility and impotence, normalize blood pressure, lower blood sugar, etc.
Perga and bee venom
Perga is called pollen collected by insects in reserve for the winter. To taste this product resembles rye bread. In perga, as in propolis, contains a large number of amino acids, vitamins and minerals. And it’s 100% assimilated. The main area of use of bee bread is medicine and cosmetology.
Bee venom is a special product of secretory activity in the body of an insect. It is a clear, colorless liquid with a rather pleasant smell. Its chemical composition has not yet been fully studied. It is believed that 500 insect bites can become fatal to humans at the same time. In small quantities, bee venom can be used as an anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial agent.
Instead of an afterword
There are many breeds of bees bred in Russia. Most of them are highly productive. Breeding Central Russian, Ukrainian, gray mountain and other varieties of bees discussed above can be a truly profitable business, bringing good income to its owner, and tangible benefits to the country's economy.