Himalayan Populations

Himalayan honey bees refers to two different honey bee species living in the Himalayas: the Himalayan populations of the Asian honey bee, kept in hives (Apis cerana, whose mountain branch is A. c. himalaya), and the Himalayan giant honey bee (Apis laboriosa), the world's largest honey bee, which builds open combs on steep cliffs. There is no single "Himalayan bee subspecies"; nor are these bees a subspecies of our honey bee, Apis mellifera.

Which honey bees live in the Himalayas?

The older text spoke of a "Himalayan bee breed": yellow and black, kept in hives and hardy in the cold. This description is muddled. There are three honey bees of importance for beekeeping in the Himalayas:

The hive bee of the Himalayas: the Asian honey bee

The bee kept for centuries in Himalayan villages is the Asian honey bee (Apis cerana). It is a separate species from our honey bee and cannot mate with it (for details, see the Asian honey bee page). Populations in the Himalayas and the mountain belt of northern India and Tibet form a distinct "Himalayan group" in terms of body measurements; bees in the central-eastern hill regions of Nepal have been recorded as the subspecies A. c. himalaya. These mountain bees are generally larger and darker than their relatives in tropical Asia.

• Hive type: hollowed-out log hives or wall hives built into the thick stone walls of houses. Local people build the hive inside the house wall, with the entrance opening to the outside.
• Colony: small colonies, low but steady honey yield.
• Cold adaptation: can fly on cool mornings and at high altitude; makes good use of mountain flora.
• Pollination: an important pollinator of apples, vegetable seed crops and wild plants in mountain farming.

The Himalayan giant honey bee (Apis laboriosa)

The Himalayan giant honey bee is the largest honey bee in the world: its workers can reach about 3 cm in length. Its thorax has golden-brown hair, and its abdomen is dark with light bands. It used to be considered a subspecies of the giant honey bee (Apis dorsata); today most researchers regard it as a separate species.

• Range: the mountainous parts of Nepal, Bhutan, northern India, Yunnan (China), Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam.
• Altitude: it usually builds its nests at 2,500–3,000 m; foragers can go above 4,000 m.
• Nest: a single, open, very large comb under the overhangs of steep cliffs facing south or south-west; some combs are wider than a person is tall. Many colonies sit side by side on the same cliff.
• Seasonal migration: colonies descend to lower valleys in winter and return to the same high cliffs every spring.
• Cold adaptation: with its large body and dense hair, it can fly at low temperatures; it has powerful wings for lift in thin air.

Honey hunting and "mad honey"

The honey of the Himalayan giant honey bee is not taken from hives but by honey hunting. In some mountain villages of Nepal, especially in Gurung communities, hunters descend the cliff on rope ladders, drive the bees away with smoke and cut the comb. This traditional practice is very dangerous, and in recent years overharvesting and tourism pressure have become a concern because they have led to a decline in colonies.

Honey collected in spring from the rhododendron (Rhododendron) species that bloom around the cliffs may contain toxic substances called grayanotoxins. This honey is known as "mad honey"; it has the same effect as the mad honey produced from rhododendron in Türkiye's eastern Black Sea region.

The Western honey bee in the Himalayas

The Western honey bee (Apis mellifera) was brought to the Himalayan foothills in the twentieth century. Because it provides larger colonies and higher honey yields, it became widespread in commercial beekeeping in the lower valleys. However:

• there is competition for forage with the local Asian honey bee,
• the transmission of diseases and parasites between the two species is a concern,
• in high, cold villages, the local Asian honey bee often remains more suitable.

Development organisations in the region also support modern framed-hive beekeeping with the Asian honey bee in mountain villages.

Why is it interesting for beekeepers in Türkiye?

• The mad honey connection: mad honey from the eastern Black Sea and Himalayan honey come from the same plant group; careful consumption is essential in both regions.
• The value of the local bee: the replacement of the local Asian honey bee by the Western bee in Himalayan villages resembles the debates in Türkiye about protecting local subspecies.
• Species vs subspecies: the "Himalayan bee" is not a subspecies you can buy; these bees are separate species from our honey bee.