STUDY ON THE BIOLOGY AND HONEY PRODUCTION OF HONEY BEE HYBRID (F1) Apis mellifera carnica × Apis mellifera lamarckii

Abstract

This study investigated the biology and honey production of a honeybee hybrid (F1) (Apis mellifera Carnica × Apis mellifera lamarckii), which was imported to three different areas in Sudan characterized by different type of forest trees, at altitude 13o North. These areas are the Dindir area, Ziziphus spina Christi (Sidir), Kosti area, Acacia nilotica (Sunut), and Umrowaba area, Acacia seyal (Taleh) 2 km2 for each area. In the beginning of the study field survey was conducted among the farmers, the questionnaire included the beekeeping practices, purposes of using hives, percentage of modern hives, whether they practiced traditional or modern hives, average yield/hive during one extraction of honey and whether the production done annually, biannually or perennially and the percentage of people using beekeeping. Secondly: The life cycle was studied using 3 hives in each of the 3 areas, the duration of the egg, larva, pupa and adult was calculated for each queen, worker and drones in the nine hives, and the average values were obtained, the mean duration was as follows: (a) Queen: eggs hatch in 3 days, larva duration 8-days, pupa duration was 12-days and adult 16-days, (b) worker eggs hatch in 3-days, larva 8-days, pupa 15-days and adult 21-days, (c) drones eggs hatch in 3-days, larva duration 9 days, pupa duration 16-days and the adult duration was 24 days. Thirdly: Honey production was investigated using 6 hives in each of the 3 areas. The average honey yield was taken at the end of ii each flowering season for the 3 different areas. The yield of the six hives at Dindir, which were taken in November was 3 kg in (Sidir) and the six hives at Kosti, which was taken in October yield 2.7 kg in (Sunut) and that at Umrowaba which taken in January yielded 2.6 kg in (Taleh). Statistical analysis showed that in Sidir the production of honey was significantly higher than the other two areas (Kosti, Sunut) and (Umrowaba, Taleh) using complete randomized design (C.R.D).