Nesting Sites of Apis cerana Fabr. (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in Two Different Altitutes of Polyculture Plantations in West Sumatera

Abstract

Natural cavities in polyculture plantations are important for the conservation of honeybees. This study was aimed to determine the diversity, nest sizes, and fluctuations in the use of sites for nesting by Apis cerana Fabr. in polyculture plantations in two altitudes in West Sumatra. A census method was used to obtain the data variables in 10 plantations (five locations for each altitute). Polyculture plantations used as the study sites were dominated by coconut in lowland areas and coffee in highland areas. The results showed that nesting sites of Apis cerana were found amongst 18 species of plants belonging to 15 families (12 species in lowlands and seven species in highlands). Most of the nests were placed on Cocos nucifera (coconut) trees in lowland sites, and on Erythria variegata (dadap) in highland sites. Nests were also found to be located mostly in the cavities of trees with diameter 21-60 cm. Nest entrances were located at 228.31 cm above ground surface (ags) in highland and at 116.04 cm ags in lowlands. The nest entrances in highlands measured 12.21 by 3.73 cm (height and width), and in the lowlands 14.93 by 7.36 cm. The percentage of tree cavities used for nesting was statically higher in lowland (40.73%) compared to high land (17.86%), but it fluctuated very slightly in both high or lowland areas during observation. The percentage of trees with nests decreased in December and January but increased in February, with the same patterns found in both high and lowlands. Our research suggests that higher tree diversity in polyculture plantations promotes increased use by honeybees for nesting. Thus, the more tree diversity in polyculture plantations the better it could conserve natural honey bees populations.

Diversity of wild edible fruit plant species and their threatened status in the Aceh Province, Indonesia

“…Moreover, the wild edible fruit plants have multiple uses such as cosmetics (Gebauer et al 2016), medicine (Tshikalange et al 2016;Dreher 2018;Elfrida et al 2021;Majumder et al 2021;Navia et al 2021a;Suwardi et al 2021), spices or condiments (Navia et al 2020a), crafts (Atato et al 2012;Hazarika and Singh 2018), traditional ceremonies (Sutrisno et al 2020), fiber (Karun et al 2014), fuel (Debela et al 2012;Klimas et al 2012), and even as a substantial income for local communities, particularly those living in remote areas (Deb et al 2013;Suwardi et al 2020;Kotresha and Siddeshwari 2021). Several wild fruit trees, such as Spondias lutea L., are also used as nesting sites for different types of honey bees, which produce high-quality honey that is harvested and sold by local communities to improve their household income (Jasmi et al 2014). The fruits have implications for the development of agricultural systems as a source of local food (Navia et al 2020b;Navia 2021b).…”

Diversity and blooming season of food sources plant of Apis cerana (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in polyculture plantation in West Sumatra, Indonesia

“…Various of plants found in the area are industrial plants, forestry, and fruit plants (BPS 2011). Plantation plays an important role as habitat for various species of bees in Sweden, Poland, United Kingdom, Germany and Francis (Westphal et al 2008) and as the provider of nesting cavity sites for A. cerana in West Sumatra (Jasmi et al 2014b) and other various species of bees lodged in a cavity in the Annapolis valley, Nova Scotia, Canada (Sheffield et al 2008). Another important role of the plantation is food resources provider for A. cerana in Kepahiang Sub-district of Bengkulu (Saefudin et al 2011), for A. mellifera in Veracruz, Mexico (Vergara and Badano 2008), in Zaria, Nigeria (Mbah and Amao 2010), in Ndokwa, Niger Delta, Nigeria (Emuh and Ofuoku 2012) and for wild bees in Ottawa, Allegan and Van Buren, North America (Tuell et al 2009).…”

Visiting of Carpenter Bees Xylocopa latipes Drury to The Bean Crop in Central Sulawesi

“…Aktivitas Xylocopa dipengaruhi oleh cahaya, yang berkontribusi pada pengaturan waktu terbang dan aktivitas pencarian makanan pada tanaman kacang panjang (Jumar, 2000). Temperatur tinggi mempercepat perubahan kimia dalam tubuh tumbuhan (Jasmi, 2014). Faktor fisik diduga akan memengaruhi konsentrasi gula nektar.…”