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Apis laboriosa

Himalayan giant honey bee
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Apidae
Genus: Apis
Species:
A. laboriosa
Binomial name
Apis laboriosa
Smith, 1871
A honeycomb colony of Apis laboriosa on a vertical rockface in the Himalayas of Sikkim, India.

Apis laboriosa or Himalayan giant honey bee, is the world's largest honey bee; single adults can measure up to 3.0 cm (1.2 in) in length. Before 1980, Apis laboriosa was considered to be a subspecies of the widespread Apis dorsata, the giant honey bee, but in 1980 and for almost 20 years thereafter it was elevated to the rank of a separate species. It was classified once again as a subspecies of Apis dorsata by Michael S. Engel in 1999,[1] but was confirmed as a full species in 2020 on the basis of co-occurrence with Apis dorsata at many sites with no sign of interbreeding.[2] It is highly adapted to its highland habitat in behavior.

  1. ^ Engel, Michael S. (1999). "The taxonomy of recent and fossil honey bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Apis)". Journal of Hymenoptera Research. 8: 165–196.
  2. ^ Kitnya, Nyaton; Prabhudev, M. V.; Bhatta, Chet Prasad; Pham, Thai Hong; Nidup, Tshering; Megu, Karsing; Chakravorty, Jharna; Brockmann, Axel; Otis, G. W. (2020). "Geographical distribution of the giant honey bee Apis laboriosa Smith, 1871 (Hymenoptera, Apidae)". ZooKeys (951): 67–81. doi:10.3897/zookeys.951.49855. PMC 7390808. PMID 32774106.

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