A range of fascinating facts about stingless bees

Generally, the stingless bees are nothing but a huge group of bees that comes under the family Apidae. They are more or less similar to those carpenter bees, orchid bees, and bumblebees, etc. It is explored in most of the tropical and sub-tropical globally boasting of the major parts such as Australia, Africa, Mexico, and Brazil, etc.

To add it to a nutshell, the major location of the Central and South America the stingless bees are found which is particularly known to be the eusocial bees. Here, a few of them produce the honey on an enormous scale which is farmed by the humans respectively. Gobuzzr, a precise project exclusive designed for the farmers to help them in several ways. In the African countries, the stingless bees are quite common and it is consumed as a medicine too in mostly these gigantic communities.

The well-defined IoT technology is used for the deeper analysis of the stingless bee. For a concerned beehive, both departing & arriving time is calculated by the sensors of both transmitter & receiver. The humidity sensor is integrated along with the beehive tracking for the real-time monitoring of the temperature variations. An efficient beehive monitoring system monitors stingless bee health with the aid of sensors. Typically, there are various tools for the modern beekeeping process.

A closer look at Stingless Bees

As the stingless bees are tropical, they are found only in a few pockets all over the world. Intending towards the Central, South America, Africa & Australian warm climates these bees are more active. Similar to that of the honey bees they are known to be the social insects living in huge colonies. They are differentiated into queen, workers, drones, and soldiers. A specialized nest defender procures additional food during the larval state. By achieving physiological differences, such as the huge body helps in the protection of the entire colony.

Broadly, the stingless bees possess many characteristics more or less the same to that of the honey bees when it is pointed to the queens, they may plan in a better way too. These colonies are dependent on the single mated queen that upholds the population. In case if the queen bee dies, they rush to create a new one, but that too failed they face enormous collapse. The main unique characteristic of the stingless bee is that back up is maintained for the queens in their respective hives if the active queen fails.

Typical Behavior

As the stingless bees are active all the year, it is the least active concern in the cooler weather. The eusocial bees have a unique characteristic of stinging but it gets into the defending process by biting in case if the nest is disturbed. But here as of the stingless bees, it has huge colonies made prodigious by a series of defenders. Broadly, the female bees become the workers or the queen typically subjected to the food they receive.

The comprehensive caste system is based on the pollen consumed. As everyone knows that the stingless bees are no longer a threat to humans, as they are an exclusive addition to the backyard. Here, the apiarists do not preserve the bees for the honey, but it is conserved as the native species where the original habitat is eradicated for human development. Finally, the bees pollinate the crops, flowers, bushland during the comprehensive search of the pollen.

Beehives

While speaking about the nest in the subject of the hollow trunks or the rock crevices it has been encountered in the differential wall cavities, water meters & storage drums, etc. Mostly, the apiarists preserve the bees in the origin point of the log hive or transfer it to a wooden box, as this process is efficient to control the overall hive. Initially, they store the pollen and honey in the huge pots which are made up of the beeswax, propolis, etc.

Here, the respective pots are arranged in and around the central point of the brood coms, where larval bees are completely housed. In a situation where the worker bees emerge from the typical cells, it remains interior of the hive performing differential tasks. While the worker bees get older, they become the guards or the foragers.

An enormous Production

In concerned to the warmer locations of Australia, the bees can be consumed for minimal honey production. It may be kept in several boxes in several areas. In the initial stage, the modernized methods are developed to harvest a considerable amount of honey production from the respective stingless bees. Here, the nectar is stored in a huge expansion of gut known to be a crop. The bees get dehydrated of the nectar droplets until the honey is formed.

Enhancing the sugar content, it is not near the honey from the bees. It is more or less thin to the consistency, more or less prone to the spoiling. A common fact that commercial bees can give nearly seventy-five kilograms of honey production whereas the stingless bee produces half a kilogram. These bees produce the honey where its taste is totally different when compared to the common ones. The taste points to a mixture of sweet & sour of lemon. It also resembles the plant resin which is used to build hives, honey pots subjected to the flowers and trees visited.

Pollination

Mostly, the farmers from the Australia location depends on the western honey bee for complete pollination of the crops. For some of the crops, it is said to be that the native bees are the best pollinators. They are the precise pollinators of the differential crops such as the macadamias and mangoes etc. On the other side of the flip, the strawberries, watermelons, and leeches are also benefited to a huge level. Till now, an enormous research process is carried on with the stingless bees mainly for crop pollination in the Australian areas in its earlier stages, showing more and more potentiality. Additionally, Native Americans preserve bees as pets.

Stingless Apiarists

Typically, the ancient art of apiculture is not just limited only to the honey bees. Mostly cultures of the stingless bees are explored in the peninsula of Mexico where the Mayans preserve the native stingless before of the Spaniards gave a great introduction of the European honey bees, As of now, there is a revival in the stingless apiculture practices in most of the regions where they are native. Intended towards the Mexican parts, the stingless apiarists are working harder to bring the olden tradition. In the Australian location, the cooperatives are helping to promote the new concern.

Interesting facts

Ability to lay 300 eggs each day

In the major species of the Australian part of the stingless bees, there are about three hundred legs are laid every day. This is usually done in several batches of the brood cells which are typically provisioned, laid in few hours. The mating process takes place only once in a lifetime. The complete result leads to the death of the male ripping out of the body, killing it. It is also difficult to preserve the tiring laying lifestyle; the queen also starts reducing the production. Here, the worker bees initiate to create new plans for a queen to take over the concern.

Gradual Swarming

A typical smart variation stingless bee over the normal social bees is known to be the swarming technique. Honey bee swarms are flat singular event and the workers take flight integrated, setting a new nest. As it is an intended gradual process, these bees are more careful. Both the scout bees, a worker is ahead of the queen bee to a concerned location and constructing a nest before the queen arrives. In some cases, the honey bees can transfer materials to a new nest prior to the process is completed.

Production of honey & Propolis

The stingless bees have the capability of producing minimal qualities of honey known to be sugar bags. It is harvested along with the safer measures, leaving enough number of bees behind. A current research process is done successfully in several medicinal properties and it is carried in the peak level of the anti-microbial activity, more than that of the Manuka honey. This huge bag is not only honey, but it also spread the toast giving a delicious flavor.  

On the other side of the flip, the European honey bees are involved in the creation of the honeycomb coming out of the pure wax, a comprehensive light coloring part. First, mixing with the wax takes place along with the resins for the production of glue-like substances known to be the propolis which is mainly consumed in the fixing of gaps in & around the hive. Here, the apiarists collect the typical material due to its several medicinal properties.

Defense methods

Ideally, the stingless bees are completely defenseless and it is evolved with the several pests and the intruders. There are two fence methods such as biting and death by resin. In the first part, the native bees can deliver a minute nip with the typical mandibles is not exactly painful but it is a little bit annoying. It will be proceeded by either disturbing or opening a defensive colony. The second part is more or less similar to that of the small hive beetle, honey bees locate the insect part until everything is covered. It preserves the intruder and the body also gets integrated with the hive structure.