Bees for Development Journal 115: June 2015
Apis dorsata - champions of defence Nikolaus Koeniger and Gudrun Koeniger Key words: aculeus, alarm pheromone, Apis spp, bee behaviour, bee curtain, dwarf honey bee, giant honey bee, guard bee, honey hunting, migration
branch and form the so-called curtain (see image at foot of next page). In addition to the bees that are clinging to the branch, the bees are holding each other in chains.
Where are all the elephants, rhinos and tigers of the South East Asian rain forest? Visitors from all over the world get a clear answer to this question when they enter rain forests: all these spectacular and great animals are hiding. It is extremely difficult, even cumbersome, to view those beasts in the wild, except in special parks or fenced in places for tourists. But there is a unique and obvious exception: in the open, high up in huge, outstanding trees, it is possible to see many large combs of the giant honey bee Apis dorsata.
The origin of the honey bee sting dates back to the ovipositor of basic insect groups. The ovipositor of a tropical cricket is shown in the image at the foot of this page.
Well prepared defence Schematic of a single comb of Apis dorsata hanging under a large branch. A multiple layer of worker bees hang down from the branch and form a curtain of bees. Colony defence by Apis dorsata is a sophisticated, high achievement of honey bee evolution with a long history of gradual improvements. The natural evolution of honey bees is fundamentally linked to their ability to defend themselves from predators and honey robbers. We can assume that several million PHOTOS © NIKO & GUDRUN KOENIGER
At first glance it seems unbelievable, that while elephants, tigers and even the strong Asian bears are hiding, these nests of giant honey bees demonstrate their presence over a wide range of sight! One might conclude that these combs are empty, and therefore a colony is a worthless prey? However, the contrary is true: a huge amount of honey, brood, pollen and the protein of the (seasonally) over 70,000 worker bees offers a rewarding prey for uncountable numbers of predators, ranging from human honey hunters, bears and birds, to ants, moths, spiders, wasps and many others. In our respect for this demonstration of strength, power and dauntlessness, we understand Apis dorsata’s message which means (translated into our words): “Look, we are here and we are well prepared to defend and ward off any attack!”
Organisation and evolution The single comb of Apis dorsata is constructed under a large horizontal branch - or under any horizontal structure including bridges, buildings or rocks: the comb is totally shielded by a multiple layer of worker bees that hang down from the nesting
years ago the predecessors of our honey bees were living solitarily, like some solitary bees today. Their survival and further development was based on simple but effective defensive behaviour. Already the key for their survival was based on a remarkable and unique development invention: the stinger, or scientifically, the aculeus. Over an even longer period dating back to the expansion of insects, the ovipositor of females of primitive insects like grasshoppers and other orthopterans gradually changed. These insects used the ovipositor to hide their eggs - for example in the soil.
Ovipositor of a tropical cricket 6
At one end the ancient development function of egg laying was lost and an effective weapon for defence originated. This stinger laid the base for the development of all hymenopteran societies of today - from social wasps through ants to the numerous social bees.
Cavity protection Study of the defence situation of bees’ nests reveals a great advantage and its important impact that is rarely fully recognised. Bee species generally
