In order to survive and produce honey in latitudes where the climate is severe enough, bees of the Central Russian breed were specially bred. This species is considered one of the most aggressive.
General characteristics of the breed
This breed of bees is widespread in Russia, including Bashkortostan - it is here that you can meet purebred individuals of the Central Russian breed. In other areas, most often you can see mixed species of bees.
The Central Russian breed was first discovered more than 8,000 years ago. It was mainly found in Europe, and in Russia appeared after the mass planting of lindens began.
In the 18th century, Central Russian bees were brought to Siberia, where they were able to strengthen the immune system and increase their productivity.
Appearance
In their appearance, bees of this breed differ from their counterparts. They have a fairly large body size, wide legs, a short proboscis (up to 6.5 mm). Weight is approximately 100-110 mg. The infertile uterus of this species has a weight of up to 190 mg, and the fetal uterus - up to 200 mg.
The color of the Central Russian bees is dark gray, sometimes darker individuals are found, pronounced yellow stripes are absent. In addition, such bees are hairy enough, the length of their hairs reaches up to 5 mm.
Representatives of this species are among the largest in the world and are second only to bees of the Italian breed in size.
Productive Features
Insects of this species are very productive and hardy. They can work all day if the air temperature does not fall below 10-12 degrees, and there are no strong gusts of wind. Also, they do not lose their working capacity even in heat up to 35-37 degrees, but only if the hives are located in the shade.
In latitudes with a harsh climate, where the Central Russian bee breed is predominantly bred, a rather short honey harvest season. It is followed by a cold and long winter. In this regard, the bees try to produce as many reserves as possible for the winter in a short period of time. During the season, workers of the bee hive produce 50-70 kg of honey.
In hot weather, the productivity of honey in bees of the Central Russian breed is markedly reduced. From one hive the beekeeper can collect no more than 30 kg.
Also, bees of this species have a high ability to quickly build hives and honeycombs. At this time they produce a lot of wax.
It is worth noting that the Central Russian bee breed is also characterized by high fecundity. During the day, their uterus can lay from 2,000 to 2,500 eggs, being distracted only by breaks for eating.
These insects not only actively breed, but also take good care of their offspring, so most of it survives.
Behavior features
Before starting to breed Central Russian bees, the beekeeper should familiarize himself with some features of her behavior:
- This type of insect is particularly aggressive. If the beekeeper inadvertently inspects the hive, it can be stung. Therefore, the hives must be inspected very carefully without unnecessary movements. In this case, its inhabitants simply wait, having accumulated below, on the removed bar. When examining the dwelling of insects, it is almost never possible to see the uterus, because it hides well among other individuals.
- Bees, in spite of their restless nature, are not subject to theft and cannot always defend even their own stocks of honey.
- The Central Russian breed of bees has a high ability to adapt to almost any climate. Working individuals of the hive begin flying over in March, when the temperature does not reach even 5 degrees Celsius.
- Insects do not like gloomy weather, rain and strong winds, at this time they prefer to be in the hive.
- Central Russian bees selectively relate to the choice of plants with which they produce honey. Prefer buckwheat and linden. If these plants bloom poorly, it is very difficult for bees to change their habits and switch to another honey plant.
Beekeepers also note the high loyalty of the Central Russian species of bees. To successfully contain them, do not allow swarming in the wrong period.
It is very important to monitor the age of their uterus. If she is no more than two years old, then the bees are unlikely to gather swarm. When the uterus gets older, the bees can swarm at any time, so you need to find a replacement for it in time. How to bring out a new uterus read here.
In addition, it is important that the fertility of the queen bee is high enough. In this case, the insects cease to fear for their future offspring and continue to work.
You can learn more about the life of Central Russian bees and behavior patterns by watching the following video:
Breeding zones
The Central Russian bee breed is successfully bred both in Russia and in many countries of Europe - Germany, France, Switzerland, Holland, etc. It is ubiquitous throughout Russia, including in the Urals and Siberia.
Beekeepers believe that insects of this species feel good in regions with low temperatures, for example, in the north of the European part of Russia, in Siberia and the Urals. A large number of apiaries with Central Russian breed can be found in Bashkortostan.
If insects of this breed are sent to the Caucasus or Central Asia, then they gradually stop collecting large quantities of honey, and become less hardy. Therefore, they are often crossed with other breeds.
It is worth noting that in beekeepers this breed is the main one for selection. With its help, other bee breeds have already been successfully bred:
- Tatar;
- Chelyabinsk;
- Vologda;
- Vladimir
- Oryol;
- Bashkir;
- Novosibirsk;
- Perm;
- Krasnoyarsk;
- Kirov
- Mordovian;
- Burzyanskaya.
All varieties of the above breeds of bees differ from each other in appearance, productivity, size. But many features of behavior and lifestyle are similar. The Bashkir bees are the most resistant to colds, and the Burzyans are the most prone to swarming.
Of the breeds listed above, produced from Central Russian, the Bashkir won the most popularity among beekeepers. Its representatives are distinguished by endurance and frost resistance.
Honey Harvest Features
Beekeepers note that this breed will not collect nectar for the production of honey from any flowering plant, as other species of insects do. For the production of their honey, Central Russian bees prefer only linden trees and buckwheat.
Representatives of this species produce a large amount of honey in those areas where strong summer and late bribes. A swarm of bees can use these types of bribes in different ways. If it is weak, then the insects are busy increasing their numbers and do not let all working bees collect nectar.
If the melliferous plants bloom profusely, then all the forces of the hive are thrown to collect nectar. The Central Russian bee breed first fills the upper parts of the hive with honey, only then, in the absence of free space, the nectar begins to be added to the nest. They also produce large amounts of wax.
The honey tab for this type of insect has its own characteristics - they try to leave a small gap between the deposits and the walls of the honeycombs, which contains air. Thanks to this, their honey has a fragrant aroma and a sweet-sugary taste. The signet of honey in this breed is always dry, has a white color. Central Russian bees never produce “wet” honey.
Content Features
Not all beekeepers are able to contain this breed. Its breeding is preferred by qualified beekeepers with extensive experience.
Nutrition
During the wintering period, food in Central Russian bees is spent very economically, so beekeepers can safely leave frames filled with honey only partially in the hive.
When the air temperature rises to 12-14 degrees Celsius, the insects make their first overflights, and the uterus actively lays eggs. In this regard, they need more food. Bees during this period try to replenish their stocks.
Skilled beekeepers recommend that beginners leave at least three kilograms of quality honey for food for the Central Russian breed for winter if they winter on the street.
Conditions of detention
Due to the fact that the bees of the Central Russian breed tend to swarm, the beekeeper should put the framework for expansion in time to the hive and make the replacement of old queens with younger ones. An independent swarm of bees can form when at least two kilograms of bribes accumulate. In this case, 10-50 percent of the entire apiary can swarm, and it is very difficult to combat this phenomenon.
It is worth noting that in the Central Russian bee breed, two uterus cannot coexist in the same hive, as in some other varieties of these insects.
Central Russian bees in the early autumn stop growing brood, so adults do not wear out in the winter. As a result, beekeepers do not observe a large number of deaths in the spring.
Wintering
The content of this breed of bees in the winter period requires compliance with the following rules:
- Assembling the hive for the winter involves placing a horizontal full-time frame on the slats.
- On the upper bars of the frame during the check of the beehive, lay a pepper cake.
- It is not necessary to apply active tuning of the framework with wax with the advent of spring.
Beehives, which contain the Central Russian breed of bees, beekeepers are placed in such a way that the letoki look to the east. A couple of days after the swarming, the old family moves half a meter away. Letok unfolds 90 degrees. On a free place you need to install a new hive, in which a young swarm of bees will live.
Due to the fact that insects first collect honey in the store’s extension, and only from there it is fed to the part of the hive where the brood is kept, the beekeeper should be extremely careful when pumping it out before wintering so as not to leave its wards without food for a long time.
Other care features
Due to its strong immunity, the Central Russian bee breed is practically not susceptible to diseases, which are often affected by other varieties of these insects (nosematosis, European foulbrood or toxicosis). Only in some cases does a wax moth occur.
The fact is that the formation of this breed of bees occurred in rather harsh conditions. This contributed to the development of strong and productive insects. Central Russian bees are not afraid of winter and cold. Even at a time when the air temperature drops to -40 degrees, they tolerate wintering for up to seven months.
In general, the Central Russian breed of bees is quite unpretentious to weather conditions, but the beekeeper who decides to start breeding it should understand that he will have to provide them with proper care, since in his absence the insects begin to swarm, and there is a risk of their loss.
Working bees of this breed, although seemingly unpretentious at first glance, require careful care of their hive. But if the owner shows uncertainty and fear, they sting him.
Is it worth it to get bees - the pros and cons of the breed
Experienced beekeepers note several certain merits in breeding Central Russian breed:
- Bees of this species are able to adapt to almost any climatic conditions. They are not afraid of the cold, so their breeding is especially popular in areas with changeable and frosty weather.
- High resistance to various diseases characteristic of bees. Due to the fact that the breed was formed in adverse weather conditions, its representatives have a strong immune system.
- Central Russian bees have great endurance and productivity. Due to the fact that the period of honey collection in the regions where they live is rather short, they activate all their forces on it. Working bees begin to work in the morning and continue until late at night.
- Insects are also famous for the fact that they are very economical in consuming food supplies.
- Central Russian bees produce tasty and healthy honey.
- A large amount of wax is produced, which allows them to repair the hive if necessary in a short time or to build new honeycombs.
- The uterus of this bee breed is highly productive and produces a large number of eggs per day.
- Bees of the Central Russian breed are not prone to theft from other hives.
Despite the large number of advantages of these bees, they also have limitations:
- Aggressive and malicious character. Not all beekeepers can cope with the aggression of Central Russian bees. When working with them, you need to be as concentrated and cautious as possible, since they do not tolerate rudeness and negligence in relation to themselves.
- In some hives, two strong queen bees can immediately appear, which will start a war, which often leads to the swarming of all its individuals.
- Particular selectivity in the choice of honey. It is difficult for bees of this species to collect nectar from other plants if their loved ones for some reason did not bloom in large quantities.
- Despite the fact that insects are not prone to stealing from other hives, they do not seek to fight the invaders of their stocks and always give way to them.
- The tendency to swarm. The beekeeper needs to be very attentive to his hives and try to prevent this phenomenon.
It is worth noting that not all beekeepers consider the propensity of this breed of bees to swarm to be a significant minus, as this leads to the spread of their population throughout the country.
Reviews
Tatyana, 63 years old.Having learned about the endurance and productivity of Central Russian bees, after many years of hiatus in beekeeping, my husband and I decided to breed them. But everything was not so joyful. These insects have a very evil and restive character. Previously, we bred Carpathian bees, and they were pretty docile. Therefore, we left the idea of breeding Central Russian bees, deciding to return to those insects whose habits are more peaceful.
Anatoly, 56 years old.In our climate, it is better not to find bees than the Central Russian breed. They are not afraid of cold weather, hardy, tolerate wintering well if the hive is clean, dry and has food. You can get more honey from them than from any other species.
Ivan, 39 years old.An experienced beekeeper and close family friend advised to buy a bee package of the Central Russian breed and keep them in the same apiary with Ukrainian steppe bees. But, apparently, the climate of our area seemed hot for them, they produced little honey, they also reproduced poorly, so I decided to resell them.
Oleg, 48 years old.Having learned that the Central Russian bees produce the most useful and valuable honey, I decided that I would only breed them. I got acquainted with the peculiarities of behavior almost immediately, although they stung at the first times more than once. Today, there are no problems with these bees, I learned to work with them carefully and slowly.
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The Central Russian bee breed is the most promising for breeding in regions with a harsh climate. In warmer regions, the productivity and productivity of this breed will decrease markedly. But it is better to acquire insects of this variety to those beekeepers who have extensive experience and knowledge in the field of beekeeping.
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