Determining the Morphometric Traits of Apis dorsata Worker Bees of Jogimatti Forest and Chitradurga, Karnataka, India

Abstract

Main objective of the present study was to collect morphometric data of honey bee particularly Apis dorsata worker present in Chitradurga and nearby Jogimatti forest. As a result, after collecting worker bees from two different areas in the Chitradurga District in central Karnataka, selected morphological traits of A. dorsata worker bees were examined. In the collected samples, 13 phenotypic characteristics were measured. The antenna, tongue, forewing, hindwing, foreleg, midleg, and hindleg lengths varied significantly between workers bees [P 0.05]. However, there was no significant variation in reaming morphological traits [P > 0.05]. Observations found a strong link between various morphological traits and the location of A. dorsata worker bees collected from the research locations, suggesting that morphometric differences may be used to discriminate intraspecific honeybee colonies. Morphometry, a simple and fundamental taxonomic method, offers the foundation for understanding honeybee biodiversity.