Although the majority of bee plants flower throughout the year the periodicity of swarming of Apis dorsata and A. cerana and the collection of their honey is related to the flowering periods of the seasonal species.
Plants known to be visited by bees (bee plants) were observed during 1983, 1984 and 1985 in the Serdang area, Selangor, to ascertain their seasonality of flowering. This formed the basis for a calendar of bee plants. In addition the swarming behaviour of Apis cerana and Apis dorsata were also monitored.
Of the 46 species of bee plants monitored at Serdang, 21 species were major bee plants, 3 were minor bee plants and 12 were pollen plants (Table 18) 33 of these species flowered continuously throughout the year. For the 13 seasonally flowering species, the main flowering season occurred between February and April, with a smaller season between July and September. However, there is variation in the timing of the flowering seasons between years,especially for the minor season.
At Serdang, Apis cerana swarms in March and August and honey is harvested in April and September at the end of the flowering season. Yield per colony varies from 0-5 kg per year.
Swarming of Apis dorsata occurred between January and March and between July and October and is apparently related to the flowering seasons especially of rambutan and durian. Ninety percent of the colonies absconded after the onset of the rainy season (in November).
Honey of Apis dorsata is harvested from virgin forests in Langkawi and Kedah. The flowering season of forest trees there (based on records from the forest department) showed that in Langkawi flowering occurs between August and March, while at Sik in Kedah flowering occurs in August and again between January and April.
Hello,
ReplyDeleteCan I ask if this is your research? I would like to find out which plants are favored by beeds for my garden?
I would love to know the 21 species in table 18!