Comparative foraging behaviour of Apis cerana and Apis mellifera in pollinating peach and plum flowers in Kathmandu valley, Nepal

摘要

Peaches and plums are widely planted in the middle hills of Nepal. Varieties o plum are self-incompatible and require cross-pollination to produce fruits. Peach varieties are self-compatible; however, cross-pollination has been reported to increase yield and improve fruit quality (Free, 1993). Cross-pollination of peach and plum is brought about by insect pollinators that visit their flowers for pollen and nectar. Among pollinating insects, honeybees in particular are attracted to these crops and are reported to be of great benefit (Chio and Lee, 1988; Free, 1993; Mann and Singh, 1983). Practically no work has been done on the pollination of either peach or plum under the agroclimatic conditions of the Kathmandu valley of Nepal. Therefore, in the present investigation the foraging behaviour of two honeybee species-the native bee, Apis cerana, and the exotic bee, A. mellifera-on peach and plum flowers have been compared in order to assess their role as pollinators of these fruit crops. Such studies assume great importance under the local ecological conditions of Kathmandu valley where A. mellifera has been recently introduced from India.