Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. => Topic started by: dronedave22 on May 13, 2011, 08:10:31 AM

Title: Apis dorsata x Apis mellifera hybrids?
Post by: dronedave22 on May 13, 2011, 08:10:31 AM
Wondering if anyone has heard of viable hybrids of the giant honey bee Apis dorsata and the domestic honey bee Apis Mellifera naturally breeding or insemenated to produce offspring?
Title: Re: Apis dorsata x Apis mellifera hybrids?
Post by: CapnChkn on May 13, 2011, 12:46:08 PM
Your problem is that hybrids from separate species usually don't have the ability to produce offspring.  Horses and Donkeys for example.  Second, I don't know if those two can breed at all.
Title: Re: Apis dorsata x Apis mellifera hybrids?
Post by: AllenF on May 13, 2011, 08:52:37 PM
I would be worried about bringing Tropilaelaps clareae mites and other bugs/ germs over to here that are found on Dorsata bees
Title: Re: Apis dorsata x Apis mellifera hybrids?
Post by: CapnChkn on May 13, 2011, 11:23:42 PM
Now that I read the question more carefully, I see that's what you were asking.  That bugs me when people do that, my excuse is it's raining. :-D

I actually wouldn't expect anything like that to happen.  The two species have wildly different habits.  Mellifera nests in cavities, Dorsata on a single comb hanging high in the air.  Even if the genes would match up well enough, the behaviors would probably not let them "get to know one another" like that.
Title: Re: Apis dorsata x Apis mellifera hybrids?
Post by: Michael Bush on May 13, 2011, 11:26:03 PM
Their ranges overlap and I'm not aware of ANY hybrids between Mellifera and Dosata, Cerana, or Florea.